1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites

Glut of goals in Bundesliga

Matt ZuvelaNovember 29, 2014

Twenty-seven goals fell in Saturday's Bundesliga matches. Leverkusen, Schalke and Bremen earned lopsided victories. Bayern Munich and Augsburg's wins were closer, and Hannover made it interesting for Hoffenheim.

https://p.dw.com/p/1Dx2G
Fußballbundesliga 13. Spieltag 1. FC Köln vs Bayer Leverkusen Tor
Image: Patrik Stollarz/AFP/Getty Images

Leverkusen dominate Rhine derby

In the first half of the Rhine derby, two goalkeeping errors saw the teams head into halftime tied at 1-1.

Just four minutes into the game, Cologne's Matthias Lehmann was on a solo-run towards goal when he was met by a charging Leverkusen keeper, Bernd Leno. Leno dove in front of Lehmann, sending the midfielder sprawling. Leno was given a yellow card, and Lehmann converted from the spot to put Cologne ahead 1-0.

Fußballbundesliga 13. Spieltag 1. FC Köln vs Bayer Leverkusen Tor
Drmic picked up a pair of goalsImage: Getty Images/S. Steinbach/Bongarts

At the other end of the pitch, Cologne's keeper Timo Horn misjudged a direct free kick in the 26th minute, allowing the ball to bounce off his chest and right in front of Karim Bellarabi, who had no problem lapping up the opportunity to even the score at 1-1.

In the second half, Leverkusen took control of the match. An outstanding free kick from Hakan Calhanoglu in the 61st minute put them ahead before substitute Josip Drmic made it 3-1 ten minutes from time. The Swiss striker added his second near the end of the game and Bellarabi added insult by making it 5-1 to Leverkusen in injury time. It was a resounding derby victory for the home side against their cross-town rival.

Huntelaar's hundred

Fußballbundesliga 13. Spieltag Schalke vs Mainz
Huntelaar hit the hundred goal mark with SchalkeImage: picture-alliance/dpa/B. Thissen

Two goals from Klaas-Jan Huntelaar in the first half gave Schalke, at home against Mainz, his 99th and 100th goals for the Royal Blues. Just before the break, Mainz's Shinji Okazaki cut Schalke's lead in half leaving the match dangling at 2-1.

A half-time sub quickly proved effective for Schalke, who themselves were transformed from their midweek madness against Chelsea. Tranquillo Barnetta came on and scored inside his first minute on the pitch to restore their two-goal lead. Huntelaar completed his hat-trick just after the hour mark, with Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting assisting the Dutchman for the second time to make it 4-1 at the finish.

Bremen batter Paderborn

Paderborn never really found their rhythm on the road against Werder Bremen, who scored after just ten minutes thanks to a supreme free kick from Zlatko Junuzovic. The Austrian could not have placed his kick any closer to the upper left corner of the goal, and Lukas Kruse's superman effort on the goal line for Paderborn made no difference.

Two second half goals within minutes of each other decided the game for good. Davie Selke scored in the 48th minute, Fin Bartels followed up in the 50th, and Levent Aycicek added the fourth and final goal ten minutes from time to complete Bremen's 4-0 win over Paderborn.

Fußball Bundesliga 13. Spieltag Werder Bremen gegen den SC Paderborn
Fin Bartels scored second for BremenImage: Getty Images/Bongarts/C. Koepsel

Hoffenheim end losing streak

In six Bundesliga matches against Hoffenheim on the road in Sinsheim, Hannover had lost four and drew two. That balance would not improve by the end of the night.

Pirmin Schwegler drew a foul from Hiroki Sakai right on the edge of the penalty area after 20 minutes. Sakai was lucky no penalty was given and only to be given a yellow card; Hoffenheim had to settle for a free kick.

Schwegler took the free kick masterfully and scored, firing past the wall of Hannover defenders into what should have been keeper Ron-Robert Zieler's corner, putting Hoffenheim ahead.

Eight minutes before the break, Hoffenheim's Jin-Su Kim took control of the ball and sped up the left wing, positioning himself just far enough beyond Hannover's back line that his excellent cross went between three defenders to find Kevin Volland, who put away the goal.

Fußball Bundesliga 13. Spieltag Hoffenheim Hannover 96
It was the Hoffenheim of old against HannoverImage: Bongarts/Getty Images/M. Hangst

Lars Stindl got one back for Hannover minutes before the half, leaving it 2-1 at the break.

Hannover equalized through Joselu seven minutes after the restart and looked as though they might go on and win the game. Typically of the game though, the 2-2 scoreline didn't last long. Eugen Polanski launched an excellent shot from distance to put Hoffenheim back ahead.

Hoffenheim tipped the scales for good in the after 63 minutes when Schwegler's free kick found Niklas Süle, who headed in his side's fourth goal. Stindl scored his second and Hannover's third goal five minutes from time, but Hoffenheim would hold on to win 4-3, ending a three-game losing streak in the process.

Verhaeg's penalty prowess

For Hamburg, currently flirting with the relegation table positions, the first half of their away match ended with a small glimmer of hope when Rafael van der Vaart scored in the waning seconds of the half to put Hamburg ahead. But just five minutes into the second half, Augsburg equalized thanks to Halil Altintop. Raul Bobadilla added another over a quarter of an hour and Paul Verhaegh's penalty in the 20 minutes from time made it 3-1.

Verhaeg's penalty was his fifth goal for Augsburg this season. All five goals have come from the spot - only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo has more goals from penalties among players in Europe's top leagues.

Bayern win on the road in Berlin

In Berlin, Bayern Munich's Jerome Boateng was honored by his former club for being part of Germany's winning World Cup squad. It was a cordial moment between Boateng and the Hertha fans, who still hold their former defender in high regard.

Despite the warm welcome, Boateng and the rest of Bayern Munich's squad didn't hesitate to take quick control of the match. Arjen Robben put the guests in the lead with a curling effort inside the opening half an hour.

Frank Ribery celebrated his 185th appearance in a Bundesliga match, tying a record set by Matthieu Delpierre for the most Bundesliga appearances by a Frenchman, but the game remained fairly eventless. Bayern stayed in control for most of it, and while Hertha had a few chances, it was a case of just another three points for Pep Guardiola and his team.

See below for all the action from the Saturday matches in the Bundesliga as it happened.