Bundesliga SRL Round-Up | RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich win and much more
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An incredible Saturday in the Bundesliga SRL with not one, not two, not three but nine games all taking place leaving Sunday about as simple as anybody imagined. It was about as exciting as one would imagine with Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich all keeping the title race hot.
Augsburg 0-1 RB Leipzig
Not the easiest game for the away side and yet, it never looked hard. Augsburg may have walked into the game sitting close to the relegation zone but the hosts handed Leipzig a tough time. Leipzig, however, still managed to make their mark on the opening half with seven shots on goal and managed to put two of them on target but neither found the net. The same applied to the hosts with the first period ending on level terms.
That would change in the second half with Leipzig finding the target eleven minutes into the restart and it came against the run of play. The hosts started the game brilliantly but Leipzig scored and that changed the game with the away side dominating after that. They ended the game with 67 dangerous attacks as compared to 59 with seventeen shots on goal as compared to Ausburg's just seven.
Bayer Leverkusen 1-1 Mainz 05
A tough game for the hosts and Mainz made sure that Leverkusen had to work throughout the entire ninety minutes for their single point. The game started rather quietly but that eventually changed as Mainz pulled off a couple of shots before the 15-minute mark. That fuelled Leverkusen and they turned things around with four shots on target in an eight-minute spell.
Somehow, that lead to a Mainz 05 goal with them scoring against the run of play and Leverkusen went into the break behind. Things changed in the second half and Leverkusen came out firing on all cylinders. They scored five minutes into the restart and then took eleven shots on goal. Nothing found the goal despite eight on target and the hosts had to eventually settle for a draw.
Borussia Dortmund 3-0 Hoffenheim
Three points behind Bayern Munich going into the game, Dortmund knew they needed a win to keep their title hopes up and running. But that never changed and Dortmund started the game rather brilliantly with a goal a little under fifteen minutes into the first half. They doubled their lead towards the end of the first 45 and walked into the break with a two-goal lead.
Nothing changed in the second half as Hoffenheim, who struggled to make an impact in the first half, had the same luck in the second period too. They would take a few shots here and there but nothing that ever threatened the Dortmund goal. It simply emboldened the hosts and they added number three before the game was over.
Werder Bremen 2-2 FC Koln
Walking into the game, few expected Bremen to put up a fight. FC Koln walked into the stadium in better form, better position on the table and even looked better. But football is a brilliant game with the hosts taking the lead 18 minutes into the first half. Their lead didn’t last long however as Koln scored less than sixteen minutes later and ensured that both sides walked into the break on level terms. The second half, however, was boring.
That doesn’t apply to the first 15 minutes of the second half as Koln took the lead less than ten minutes into the game but that didn’t last long. Werder Bremen equalized five minutes later and that was that for the scoreline at least. Seven more shots would fly at either goal but it would be in vain and it forced both sides to settle for yet another draw.
Eintracht Frankfurt 2-2 Paderborn
Few would believe that Paderborn sitting 17th in the league table would be able to hold Eintracht Frankfurt who sat in ninth place. The hosts were supposed to be the better side and walked into the game in much better form with just one loss in their last five games. The same couldn’t be said about the away side with them winless in the same. But yet at the end of the first half, Paderborn walked into the break with a two-goal lead and the chance to move out of the relegation zone with a win.
But football is a game of two halves and the second half is where Frankfurt proved their mettle. The hosts walked out for the second half as a team transformed, scoring twelve minutes into the restart. Paderborn were shell-shocked and failed to deal with it as Frankfurt levelled the game fourteen minutes after their first. That was that despite eight more shots flying on either goal with neither side capable of pushing ahead.
Freiburg 1-0 Schalke 04
This game was never supposed to go Freiburg’s way. The hosts may have managed a decent run in their last four games (2W 1L 1D) and yet Schalke were having problems of their own. The away side walked into the game with a similar record (1W 2L 1D) and yet, that never showed on the statistics line. The away side dominated the first half with nearly six times as many shots as their hosts but still never found the net.
That changed in the second half for Freiburg as they walked out into the restart with a plan and executed it rather brilliantly. They pummelled the visitors with shots after shots after shots and eventually found the net with a little under nineteen minutes. Schalke struggled to live up to that and eventually fell well short in the end.
Borussia Monchengladbach 2-0 Hertha Berlin
A tough test for Hertha Berlin and they fell well short in the end. In fact, for large parts of the first half the away side were invisible with Monchengladbach doing most of the work. Gladbach used their form (1W 2L 1D) well and ensured that they went into the break a goal up. It should have been more but a couple of impressive saves from their four shots on target meant that one was all they had.
That would change in the second half but Gladbach only doubled their lead towards the end of the second half despite ten shots from either side. That showed a fightback of sorts from Berlin but unfortunately, it only lasted so long with the hosts eventually scoring and putting the game well past.
Union Berlin 3-2 Fortuna Dusseldorf
The game of the night and somehow two sides battling against mid-table mediocrity managed to score five goals between them. But a quick look at the first half and nothing about it would tell you that a three more goals were about to hit the net. Three more because Dusseldorf opened proceedings with a well-taken strike but their lead lasted only three minutes making those two moments the best of the opening 45.
Things certainly changed in the second half with Berlin pushing forward less than seven minutes into the restart and that set the tone for the rest of the half. A couple more shots from either side marked the second half as well and then suddenly, it exploded. End to end football at it’s best with the game’s best moments played after the 75th minute. Nine shots on goal, and it was Berlin that doubled their lead with Dusseldorf pulling one back minutes later. They tried their best to score the equalizer but luck wasn’t on their side.
VFB Wolfsburg 3-3 Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich are leading the pack as they walked into the game and a win would have ensured their place at the top of the table even if Dortmund won. Their rivals did win but Bayern, shockingly, managed to do nothing more than survive an incredible draw. And by incredible, we mean incredible with six goals scored and the first of the lot came five minutes into the game with Bayern doing the scoring.
That set the tone for the game with Bayern dominating the shot count. They took a stunning 12 shots on goal and managed to score just two with three on target. Wolfsburg, on the other hand, managed three shots and pulled one back with their third shot on goal. That was in the first half with the second half showing no changes. Bayern continued to dominate the game and doubled their lead eleven minutes into the restart and then Wolfsburg took control. They scored twice from their five shots in the final half-hour with Bayern struggling to do the same.
