With 15 minutes left, Borussia Dortmund looked comfortable with a three goal lead against Hoffenheim. What happened next, however, was incredulous. First Ishak Belfodil made it 2-1 with a scuffed finish, before Pavel Kaderabek’s header brought the score back to 3-2. And then, with three minutes left on the clock, Belfodil scored his second to complete the most unlikeliest of comebacks. Dortmund had snatched a draw from the jaws of victory.
All of which allowed Bayern Munich to take advantage of BVB’s slip-up in their own match against Schalke. The score in the end was 3-1 and, whilst it was not a stellar Bayern performance, it was enough to claim all three points and, in doing so, bring the gap to Dortmund down to five points.
It was also an important weekend at the bottom. Saturday saw a proverbial six-pointer between 17th placed Hannover and Nürnberg, who prop up the table. It was Hannover who claimed the victory by a 2-0 scoreline. Florian Müller, who was brought in on loan from Eintracht Frankfurt during the January Transfer Window, scored a brace. His first, a header in stoppage time of the first half, killed a Nürnberg side who were already up against it. They were reduced to 10 men in the 11th minute following a rash challenge from Simon Rhein. Things continue to go against the Bavarian side.
Bayer Leverkusen continue to impress, at least in the Bundesliga. The fans will have wanted a reaction following the disappointing defeat to FC Heidenheim in the DFB Pokal last Tuesday. And that is exactly what they got. It was a five-star performance from Peter Bosz’s side, as they pummelled Mainz 5-1. The trio of Brandt, Havertz and Bellarabi all found the back of the net as the new manager continues to make use of his attacking talent.
The most surprising result of the weekend came at the Borussia Park, as Mönchengladbach were beaten 3-0 at home by Hertha Berlin. The side from the capital were inspired by Davie Selke, who played perhaps his best game in a Berlin shirt. It was Die Fohle’s first home defeat of the season, as they had won all of the previous 10 up to that point.
It was also a good week for Werder Bremen, who comfortably dispatched Augsburg. Milot Rashica scored the first goal of the game after just five minutes, and was able to score his second after a Johannes Eggelstein strike before he needed to leave the field in the 36th minute due to a minor discomfort. It did not effect Bremen, however, with Kevin Möhwald adding the fourth and final goal in a 4-0 victory.
The matchday also saw Freiburg and Wolfsburg play out a thrilling 3-3 draw. Die Wölfe took the lead three times, but Freiburg were always able to draw level thanks to some, at times, lacklustre defending from their opponents. And Christian Streich and co could have even come away with all three points were it not for a controversial VAR call that ruled out a last minute header due to a passive offside.
For Markus Weinzierl, time may be running out, despite him only being appointed Stuttgart manager in October. His Stuttgart side lost 3-0 to Fortuna Düsseldorf this weekend, who have won five of their last seven. Sporting Director Michael Reschke confirmed that Weinzierl would not be sacked in the immediate aftermath of the game. Reschke, however, has since lost his own job with immediate effect. It will be interesting to see whether new man Thomas Hitzelsperger persists with Weinzierl in the coming weeks.