Hoffenheim went back to the top of the Bundesliga on Sunday after their 3-0 victory at home to title-rivals Hamburg, thanks to two first-half goals from Hoffenheim’s Nigeria striker Chinedu Obasi.
Martin Jol-coached Hamburg were humbled and drop to third as Hoffenheim blitzed the visitors with three goals after just 35 minutes to regain the top spot they held briefly at the start of the season. And Hoffenheim squandered a number of late chances to add to the score as the Hamburg defense collapsed in the closing stages.
“The team played just the way we had planned,” Hoffenheim coach Ralf Rangnick said. “This team has been together about a year and we have made a few changes, but everyone knows what they have to do. It was a good performance and the league position is pleasing.”
PHOTO: AFP
Obasi opened the scoring on seven minutes after Brazilian midfielder Carlos Eduardo Marques set up the chance and the Nigerian forward drove his shot past diving Hamburg goalkeeper Frank Rost. And just six minutes later, Hoffenheim striker Vedad Ibisevic — the league’s top scorer — scored his 10th goal of the season with a simple tap in, after Senegal striker Demba Ba pulled the defense out of position. Midfielder Sejad Salihovic then put Obasi into space to round Rost, who tapped the ball into the empty net to make it 3-0 at the break.
“We were not there mentally,” disgruntled Hamburg boss Jol said. “And that is when you get problems. We made mistakes for the first, second and third goals and you can’t afford to do that against a side like Hoffenheim.”
Having won two promotions in the last two seasons, Hoffenheim have now gone from the regional leagues to the peak of the Bundesliga thanks to the financial backing of software entrepreneur Dietmar Hopp.
Also on Sunday, VfB Stuttgart are up to fourth in the table thanks to two late goals from Germany striker Mario Gomez who scored twice in the last 10 minutes to seal a 2-0 win at home to VfL Bochum.
Borussia Dortmund drew 1-1 with Hertha Berlin at the Westfalen Stadium.
Team |
P |
GD |
PTS |
|
1 |
TSG Hoffenheim |
9 |
10 |
19 |
2 |
Bayer Leverkusen |
9 |
11 |
18 |
3 |
Hamburg |
9 |
0 |
17 |
4 |
VfB Stuttgart |
9 |
5 |
16 |
5 |
Bayern Munich |
9 |
5 |
15 |
6 |
Hertha Berlin |
9 |
1 |
15 |
7 |
Schalke 04 |
9 |
4 |
14 |
8 |
Borussia Dortmund |
9 |
2 |
14 |
9 |
Wolfsburg |
9 |
4 |
13 |
10 |
Werder Bremen |
9 |
3 |
13 |
11 |
Cologne |
9 |
-3 |
13 |
12 |
Eintracht Frankfurt |
9 |
-4 |
9 |
13 |
Karlsruhe |
9 |
-5 |
9 |
14 |
Hannover 96 |
9 |
-7 |
9 |
15 |
VfL Bochum |
9 |
-3 |
7 |
16 |
Arminia Bielefeld |
9 |
-6 |
7 |
17 |
Borussia M’gladbach |
9 |
-8 |
7 |
18 |
Cottbus |
9 |
-9 |
5 |
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
INTER AWAIT: Superb saves by PSG ’keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma inspired the victory, as Arsenal were punished for misses, including one by Bukayo Saka Arsenal on Wednesday fell short on the big stage again as their painful UEFA Champions League semi-final exit against Paris Saint-Germain left Mikel Arteta to rue his club’s failure to provide him with enough attacking options. Arteta’s side were unable to reach the Champions League final for the first time in 19 years as PSG clinched a tense 2-1 win at Parc des Princes. Trailing 1-0 from last week’s first leg in London, the Gunners made a blistering start to the second leg, but could not convert their chances as Gianluigi Donnarumma’s superb saves inspired PSG’s 3-1 aggregate victory. Arsenal were punished for
Taiwanese e-sports veteran Lin “ET” Chia-hung yesterday successfully defended his King of Fighters XV title at this year’s Evolution Championship Series: Japan (EVO Japan), securing his second consecutive championship. Lin claimed victory with a 3-1 win over Japanese pro gamer “mok” in the grand final, repeating his earlier 3-1 win against the same opponent in the winners’ final. The 40-year-old earned a ¥1 million (US$6,897) cash prize at the two-day tournament, which drew 294 competitors. Mok, Lin’s toughest rival in the bracket, took home ¥400,000 as runner-up. Lin remains undefeated in match sets against mok in King of Fighters XV, holding a 10-0 record,
THRILLER: Raphinha gave Barca a 3-2 lead with two minutes remaining of regular time, but Francesco Acerbi equalized the game in the second minute of added time Davide Frattesi on Tuesday fired Inter into the UEFA Champions League final with an extra-time winner that gave the Italians a stunning 4-3 triumph over Barcelona, 7-6 on aggregate. Italy midfielder Frattesi won a tie for the ages under a downpour in Milan when he lashed home in the 99th minute, sending a packed and rocking San Siro wild with joy. Simone Inzaghi’s team will face either Arsenal or Paris Saint-Germain at the end of this month in Munich, Germany, where they would feel they have a great chance to be crowned kings of Europe for a fourth time after