Union Berlin continues to work on its Bundesliga fairy tale and temporarily overtakes leaders Bayern Munich. RB Leipzig surprisingly dropped points, while VfL Bochum pulled TSG Hoffenheim into the relegation battle with a spectacular win.

Union Berlin – FSV Mainz 05 2: 1 (1: 0)

The high-flyers from Union Berlin also won their fifth competitive game this year and have stormed to the top of the Bundesliga table for the time being. Coach Urs Fischer’s team beat FSV Mainz 05 2-1 (1-0) in the style of a top team thanks to a late goal from Joker Jordan Siebatcheu (84′) and drew ahead of Bayern in the table for at least 26 hours Munich, who can only intervene on Sunday evening at VfL Wolfsburg and is under a lot of pressure.

Striker Kevin Behrens (32nd) had previously scored the lead for Köpenicker in the sold-out stadium An der Alten Försterei, ex-Unioner Marcus Ingvartsen equalized with a hand penalty after video evidence (79th). With 39 points, the Unioners have almost reached the 40-point goal that Fischer always cautiously formulated and are increasingly becoming a serious championship candidate. Mainz, on the other hand, remains stuck in the gray midfield of the table.

Four days after the 2-1 victory in the cup against the wolves and the failed change of the Spanish dribbling artist Isco, there was hardly any fatigue at Union from the start, the Berliners were immediately the more active team and had a low shot from Jerome Roussillon (10th minute). .) the first chance of the game. Coach Fischer, who according to his own statement is only interested in the table “after the 34th matchday”, saw a courageous performance from his team, which was rewarded in the 32nd minute: Paul Seguin found Behrens with his cross from the right , who extended the ball from a few meters into the goal one day after his 32nd birthday.

The guests from Mainz mainly concentrated on counterattacking, only after falling behind did Bo Svensson’s team become a little more active. Union was defensive but stable. The game remained poor even after the change of ends, Roussillon (48th) tested FSV keeper Finn Dahmen with a shot from the second row. Union managed the narrow lead cleverly, Mainz lacked the clout a few days after the clear 0: 4 cup defeat against Bayern Munich. The flow of the game suffered from many interruptions in the second half, but both teams continued to search for the way forward. After a handball from Seguin, Mainz came back into the game, but the Irons hit back.

VfL Bochum – TSG Hoffenheim 5:2 (3:0)

VfL Bochum continued their winning streak in the Ruhr Stadium under coach Thomas Letsch, but for TSG coach Andre Breitenreiter the air in Hoffenheim is getting thinner and thinner. In the 5:2 (3:0) against the struggling Kraichgauer, the Letsch team celebrated their fifth home win in five games, climbed to a non-relegation zone and drew level with TSG on points. Hoffenheim, however, remained without a win in their ninth league game in a row.

In front of 23,700 spectators on Castroper Straße, Philipp Hofmann (22nd), Philipp Förster (30th) and Takuma Asano (40th) gave VfL a comfortable lead – each with a pass from the outstanding Christopher Antwi-Adjei. Hoffenheim came back twice in the second half through Christoph Baumgartner (49′) and Munas Dabbur (77′), but Bochum’s Erhan Masovic (69′) and Moritz Broschinski (83′) made the decision. While the Westphalians won five in a row at home for the first time since 1997, TSG have been waiting for a league win for 113 days and are sinking deeper and deeper into the relegation battle.

“We have to act differently than in the first few minutes of the first leg and be awake from the first minute,” Hoffenheim coach Breitenreiter had demanded before the game after his team had been 2-0 down in the first game of the season after just 13 minutes. But it was similar to the first leg. Strong at home, Bochum tried from the start to find gaps in Hoffenheim’s defensive network. Oliver Baumann effortlessly fished down Hofmann’s first attempt at goal (9′), shortly afterwards the TSG keeper was able to clear Asano at the last moment (10′) after central defender John Anthony Brooks failed to head the ball back.

Bochum stayed tuned – and was rewarded. First, center forward Hofmann only had to push an exemplary cross from winger Antwi-Adjei over the line, then birthday boy Förster raised the ball. The Breitenreiter-Elf around starting XI debutant Thomas Delaney looked shocked, remained unimaginative, after a corner Brooks (29th) headed well over the bar. Then Bochum struck again, again on a pass from Antwi-Adjei. A through pass from the 28-year-old found the Japanese Asano, who let Hoffenheim’s Stanley Nsoki get out with a step-over and tunnelled the pitiful Baumann. After the disastrous first round, Breitenreiter reacted with a quadruple change, shortly afterwards Hoffenheim sensed the dawn again thanks to Baumgartner. As a result, the game became increasingly heated, Bochum’s Masovic increased, Dabbur shortened before substitute Broschinski put the end to his Bundesliga debut.

Eintracht Frankfurt – Hertha BSC 3: 0 (2: 0)

After days full of chaos, Hertha BSC is also stumbling deeper and deeper into the crisis. In the first game after the Bobic bang, the Berliners lost 0:3 (0:2) to the furiously playing Champions League round of 16 Eintracht Frankfurt and presented themselves for long stretches by no means ready for the first division. A week after the derby defeat against Union (0: 2), it was the outstanding Eintracht attacker Randal Kolo Muani (21st, penalty kick / 28th), who increased the concerns at the penultimate. Aurelio Buta also scored (90.3). The disappointing team coached by Sandro Schwarz has to wait for the first points in the new year, it was the seventh bankruptcy in the last eight Bundesliga games.

The people of Frankfurt, on the other hand, were allowed to celebrate. Coach Oliver Glasner’s team confirmed their top form, remained unbeaten in the seventh game in a row – and consolidated their position in the top group. It was “turbulent and wild days,” admitted Schwarz after the dismissal of sporting director Fredi Bobic, “we had to let that sink in first.” The Hertha coach made two changes in Frankfurt: Jonjoe Kenny returned, and winter signing Florian Niederlechner made his starting eleven debut.

However, the Berliners hardly had any time to get used to the furious Frankfurters. The overwhelmed, despondent and completely insecure guests let themselves be rolled over in phases in the first half. They couldn’t get Hesse’s power offensive under control – Kolo Muani in particular showed Hertha the limits. The runner-up world champion took a penalty against Filip Uremovic, converted safely and only a little later made the double strike ice-coldly perfect after template by Jesper Lindström. In an almost perfect Eintracht half-time, Mario Götze also performed magic, new signing Philipp Max immediately settled in well, and goalkeeper Kevin Trapp, who had extended his contract until 2026, was unemployed.

Black sometimes raged on the sidelines. Because of the disappointing performance, but also because he would have liked to have received a hand penalty for his team immediately before the 0:1. And yet: Hertha was well served with the two goals conceded. The consequence? Three changes during the break, including returnee Tolga Cigerci. The Berliners dared a little more and even had a top-class chance through Jessic Ngankam (62nd) as a substitute, but the SGE still made the more dangerous impression. However, the Hessians failed to ensure clear conditions at an early stage.

1. FC Cologne – RB Leipzig 0-0

RB Leipzig suffered a setback in the title race and left big points behind. Although coach Marco Rose’s team remained undefeated in the 18th game in a row and thus equaled the club’s internal record, they only managed to draw 0-0 at the hard-fighting 1. FC Köln. RB thus missed the opportunity to at least temporarily overtake Bayern Munich. The record champions, who will play at VfL Wolfsburg on Sunday (5.30 p.m. / DAZN), are still one point ahead of Leipzig and could extend their lead. FC, who remained undefeated in their fourth competitive game in the new year, are firmly in the middle of the table.

Marvin Schwäbe was a guarantee for Cologne’s point win: The goalkeeper made a splendid save against Andre Silva (26th) and Timo Werner (32nd). With the first offensive action, national striker Werner could have put his Leipzig team in the lead, but he missed (3rd). As announced by FC coach Steffen Baumgart, Cologne started bravely and stormily in front of 49,200 spectators. With high pressure, they conquered the ball again and again, but then often remained too imprecise. The Leipzig defensive with the attentive World Cup third Josko Gvardiol was attentive and allowed little. If RB managed to cover the first Cologne pressing line, it suddenly became dangerous. Like in the 26th minute, when Konrad Laimer used Silva perfectly: The Portuguese failed just as badly against Schwäbe as Werner did a little later from an acute angle.

FC continued to counter and had their first huge chance after winning the ball: Linton Maina shot the first goal at the left post, Dejan Ljubicic (both 37′) put the rebound on the crossbar. After the break, Leipzig cheered early on about Werner’s supposed leadership. But preparer Silva was previously clearly offside (47th). Even without a goal, the game remained intense and exciting. Cologne braced itself against the playful class of the guests and did not give up. The Leipzig ball distributors Laimer and Dominik Szoboszlai in the center rarely had time to organize the game. Rose responded by substituting Sweden’s Emil Forsberg (68′), who had scored against TSG Hoffenheim in the DFB Cup during the week. Cologne continued to wait for a counterattack. Baumgart brought in the fresh attacking players Jan Thielmann and Davie Selke to keep the pressure on the Leipzig defence. However, Selke was replaced with a knee injury.