Matchday Eight in pictures
Top-of-table Bayern Munich beat up on last place Werder Bremen, while Gladbach stays close on their heels. Dortmund, on the other hand, lost their third in a row and are flirting with the drop zone.
Bayern show Bremen no mercy
By halftime on Saturday, Bayern Munich led 4-0 and had all but tuned out of their match against last-placed Werder Bremen. Their more-than-casual 6-0 victory featured Xabi Alonso's first Bundesliga goal, Philipp Lahm's first brace ever in his career, a penalty by Thomas Müller, and two goals by Mario Götze.
Gladbach sticking with Bayern
Borussia Mönchengladbach continued their Bundesliga undefeated road streak with an efficient 3-0 win against Hanover. Two goals by Max Kruse and one by Granit Xhaka kept Gladbach within shouting distance of Bayern Munich at the top of the table.
Record-setting start for Mainz
A 2-1 win against Augsburg meant that for the first time in their Bundesliga history Mainz have gone undefeated in their first eight matches. Jonas Hofmann and Jairo Samperio took care of the goals for Mainz, while Tobias Werner's lifeline for Augsburg in the 78th minute was too little too late.
Happy homecoming for Caligiuri
Daniel Caligiuri returned to Freiburg to face his former club and scored a brace, single-handedly securing a 2-1 win for his current club Wolfsburg. Sebastian Kerk's goal on a direct free kick in injury time came to late to make any difference for Freiburg, who are still looking for their first win of the season.
Stuttgart claw back a point
Hope looked lost for Stuttgart at halftime against Leverkusen. Armin Veh's side trailed 3-0 and their fifth loss of the season seemd inevitable. But Timo Werner, Florian Klein and Martin Hanik all scored in the second half, and Stuttgart were able to salvage a point with a 3-3 draw.
No joy for Dortmund
The long-awaited return of Ilkay Gündogan, Marco Reus, and Henrich Mkhitarjan from injury wasn't enough to turn the tide for Dortmund. Cologne's Kevin Vogt put the hosts up 1-0 in the first half. Dortmund's Ciro Immobile tied it up shortly after the break, but a glaring error by keeper Roman Weidenfeller gave Simon Zoller the chance to secure a 2-1 win for Cologne.
Di Matteo celebrates maiden Schalke win
New Schalke coach Roberto Di Matteo promised to shore up struggling Schalke's defense while preserving the Royal Blues' attacking firepower. He certainly achieved that in his first game in charge. Schalke beat Hertha Berlin 2-0 on goals by Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Julian Draxler.
Hamburg split the points with Hoffenheim
In a contest between third-worst and third-best, struggling Hamburg were the better side, rattling the aluminum multiple times. But as the saying goes, close doesn't get you any cigars. Anthony Modeste and Pierre-Michel Lasogga traded goals, and the two sides settled for a 1-1 draw.
Paderborn pull off comeback
If Frankfurt underestimated the Bundesliga's smallest team in Sunday's late match, they were disabused of their notions of superiority. Despite falling a goal behind just before the hour mark, Paderborn came storming back to win 3-1. The team everyone tipped for relegation this season currently sits eighth in the table.