The rise of Hertha is halted and the North further falls in the recent round of Bundesliga matches in this round up of the German Federal League.
During this Englische Woche the top match belonged to Bayern and Hertha as the two unblemished teams faced off to find out who would be the leaders of the Bundesliga. In the capital city Munich showed they are presently still the top dog as they dispatched Berlin 3-0.
It was not just a showing of the depth, but the fact that the older players still had it as both Aren Robben and Frank Ribery scored in the first and second half respectively. Bayern may no longer rely on these two on a regular basis due to recent injury issues, but each making returns to contribute sent signs across Europe that at full strength Munich is one of the most deep squads in the world.
Borussia Dortmund may not have scored six for a third consecutive match but 5-1 at Wolfsburg showed that Thomas Tuchel and BVB are ready for a run at the Bundesliga title for 16-17.
Wolfsburg looked helpless as Raphael Guerreiro, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ousmane Dembele, and Lukasz Piszczek got onto the scorers chart. Specifically the Portuguese international Guerreiro was on fine form as he assisted in Piszczek and one of Aubameyang’s goals. Those in the Champions League group with BVB, Real Madrid and Sporting Portugal will need to be wary for this team is ready to rip anyone and everyone apart limb from limb.
FC Koln has quietly gotten off to a flyer. With a 3-1 victory at Schalke the cathedral club has 10 points placing them in second in the Bundesliga. The other side of the coin is that a club like Schalke is still looking for their first points of the season.
The fact that Koln has shown recent stability goes to show that when a plan is followed through over a incremental time period, that there is a long term stability and success. Schalke, in their fans eyes, is in crisis mode and yet there is still the fact that the club’s new management has been trying to unravel all the wrong done to them by the previous administration, and it just takes time.
Eintracht Frankfurt was the big club tabbed with the highest probability of fighting off relegation to start the season. Funny how after a 2-0 win at FC Ingolstadt all that seems to be looking for naught.
The hosts Ingolstadt placed pressure on the Eagles, but the sturdy hard working defense held its own all match. Mexican international Marco Fabian again had a man of the match performance while assisting in both goals and providing excellent passing from beginning to end. Long range effort from Bastian Oczipka was a particular delight as Frankfurt now sit in fourth with nine points from possible 12.
Other mid week results in the Bundesliga:
SC Freiburg compounded the woes of HSV as the Black Forest club sent the visitors back north with a 1-0 loss. Hamburg now have only one point from their first four.
Hoffenheim defense again showed its ugly side as they conceded a late goal to Darmstadt, 1-1 the scoreline in Sinsheim.
Bayer Leverkusen continued their slow start to the 2016-17 season as they were unable to find the net in a 0-0 draw with FC Augsburg.
Werder Bremen is still looking for a new full time manager and their first points of the season as they fell at home to Mainz 05 2-1.
Borussia Monchengladbach road woes continued as they were only able to gain a 1-1 draw at RB Leipzig.
Player of the Week
Must go to Raphael Guerreiro with his goal and two assists in Dortmund’s 5-1 win over Wolfsburg. The 12 million Euro signing seems to have gone under the radar with the bigger name signings but this European Championship winner is just what was needed by Dortmund as he proved the real difference maker in the match.
German Phrase
Englische Woche: phrase used for a midweek round of league matches, as is the norm in English soccer
