Bundesliga 2007/08 ~ Champions: FC Bayern München

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The Bundesliga returns at the weekend following the international break with the chasing pack looking to keep pace with top team Bayern Munich. Werder Bremen and Schalke will need to pick up wins if they are to close the gap at the top.

The opening match of Round 10 in the Bundesliga takes place on Friday night with bottom side Energie Cottbus travelling to third from bottom Duisburg. New Cottbus trainer Bojan Prasnikar is looking for his side’s first win of the season, but things won’t be easy at the MSV-Arena. Two draws in his first two matches in charge have steadied the ship, but Energie will have to start winning if they are to climb off the bottom. Prasnikar is likely to stick with the same eleven that secured a point last time out against Hertha Berlin.

Brazilian Ailton is also likely to retain his starting role for Duisburg after his goal scoring debut against Werder Bremen. Rudi Bommer has a number of defensive worries ahead of the bottom of the table clash. New signing Roque Junior will not be involved, and with Fernando and Filipescu out injured and Caceres and Georgiev suspended, Bommer may turn to amateur players Georges N´Doum and Mathias Tietz. This will be the first meeting between the two sides in the Bundesliga.

Leaders Bayern Munich face an away trip to Bochum. The Bavarians start the weekend with a five point lead at the top of the Bundesliga and will be hoping that their numerous international players show no ill effects of their midweek outings. Ottmar Hitzfeld may have Miroslav Klose available again after injury and could see the dream pairing of Toni and Klose reunited if both players prove their fitness. Martin Demichelis is a doubt after returning from international duty with Argentina with a back problem.

Bochum will be looking to end a poor run of results which has seen them slip down into 14th place. Marcell Koller only has Christoph Dabrowski and Martin Meichelbeck out injured.

Third placed Werder Bremen take on Hertha Berlin at the Weser Stadion hoping for another three points. After a somewhat slow start, Werder have found their feet and form in recent games and look to be one of the teams capable of making a serious challenge to Bayern’s early season dominance. A win on Saturday would make it three league wins in a row for Thomas Schaaf’s side. The trainer, who has just signed an extension to his contract, is expected to have Boubacar Sanogo, Tim Borowski, and Tim Wiese back after injuries.

The visitors find themselves in a mid-table grey zone where they could go one of two ways. A loss at Werder would see them moving in the wrong direction towards the bottom of the table, whereas three points would take them nearer to the top five. Trainer Lucien Favre will be looking for a little more consistency from his team in the coming matches- starting with Werder on Saturday.

Patrick Ebert will return to the starting XI, while Solomon Okoronkwo is challenging André Lima for the second striking berth behind Marko Pantelic.

Mirko Slomka’s Schalke side travel to the north coast to play Hansa Rostock. Even as the away side the Königsblauen should start as favourites in a game they need to win if they are to keep up their Bundesliga challenge. Up until their recent defeat to Karlsruher, Schalke had won four league games in a row and were looking really ominous. Everybody involved with the club will be hoping for an immediate return to that form. It looks as if Christian Pander will still not be available so Slomka will turn to either Dario Rodriguez or Benedikt Höwedes.

Frank Pagelsdorf also saw a winning streak brought to an end last time out as Wolfsburg ended their three game winning run. The visit of last season’s runners up Schalke is a big challenge for the Ostseestädter. Currently lying in 15th, one place above the drop-zone, they can ill afford to be dropping too many points at home this season. The trainer is hoping that veteran midfielder Stefan Beinlich will be given the green light to play following a knee injury.

A tasty looking tie is in prospect at the Bay-Arena as Leverkusen entertain Borussia Dortmund. Michael Skibbe’s side have lost their last two league games, after a run of four wins, so will want to get back to winning ways quickly. Tranquillo Barnetta has returned injured from Switzerland’s midweek friendly with the USA, and joins Bernd Schneider and Carsten Ramelow on the injury list. With Arturo Vidal only expected to land back from Chile on Friday afternoon, his place in the side may be given to Ricardo Faty.

Dortmund trainer Thomas Doll is planning on having both Philipp Degen and Mladen Petric back in the starting line-up for the Bundesliga match. Christian Wörns is suspended so Robert Kovac will come into the centre of Dortmund’s defence.

Hamburg welcome last season’s champions Stuttgart. The Hanseaten currently find themselves eight places and seven above VfB in the table and will be looking to make the most of home advantage to heap more misery on an underperforming VfB. They will have to do that however without their influential captain Rafael van der Vaart who misses out with a thigh injury. The Dutch midfielder was forced off during his countries Euro 2008 qualifier with Slovenia. Also unavailable is Nigel de Jong, who has torn a hamstring in his thigh.

With successive league defeats to Hannover and Hansa Rostock, Armin Veh can hardly afford another loss. Stuttgart have particular problems down their left-hand side with Arthur Boka (knee ligament tear), Antonio da Silva (calf problem) and Thomas Hitzlsperger all unavailable. With both Fernando Meira and Mathieu Delpierre out, either Gledson or amateur player David Pisot will come in.

Nürnberg will be looking to finally get their season going on Saturday after the international break, but it won’t be easy against Eintracht Frankfurt. Hans Meyer has seen his side go from Cup Winners to possible relegation candidates in a matter of months. A solitary victory in their opening nine fixtures sees them second from bottom with just six points. A thigh injury to Andreas Wolf means that captain Thomas Galasek will fall back into the back four. Frankfurt on the other hand, are enjoying one of their best starts to a Bundesliga season for many years. Currently seventh, the Adler could climb as high as second with a win against ‘der Klub’.

Sunday sees second place Karlsruher looking to continue their super start to the season with a home game against Bielefeld. The newly promoted side have already achieved six wins this season- a feat only bettered by Bayern Munich. It seems likely that Edmund Becker will keep faith with the team that ended Schalke’s unbeaten run last time out. Bielefeld’s season has floundered in recent games with four consecutive defeats. The form guide suggests a home win and a continuation of the fantastic Karlsruher story.

The final match of the weekend sees Hannover host Wolfsburg at the AWD Arena. The international break came at the wrong time for Hannover as they would have preferred to have built upon their great win over Stuttgart, which was their third on the bounce. Felix Magath’s Wolfsburg secured their first home win last time out, and will be looking to grab an away win which would give them valuable points in their mid-table position.

Goal.com - Bundesliga - Bundesliga Weekend Preview: Round 10

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FC Energie Cottbus and MSV Duisburg face off Friday in a first battle to decide their survival in the Bundesliga.

Last place Cottbus have been waiting six months for their first victory. Duisburg have lost five in a row. Both teams must win. And the sense of urgency is palpable in each camp.

Roque Junior out

"For us it's about survival in the Bundesliga", said Duisburg's captain Ivica Grlic. Coach Rudi Bommer projects a confidence that one wouldn't expect from a team that has lost five straight. "If we play with concentration as a unit, then we'll take the three points back to Duisburg."

Brazilian Roque Junior won't be there to help his teammates however. Boomer considers playing Roque, who was just signed on Wednesday, to be premature: "He can play. But he needs to be in playing shape. He first needs to start training for football", said Bommer.

"You have to make a statement"

Bommer is in a desperate situation to bolster his depleted defence. In addition to the injured Fernando und Iulian Filipescu as well as the suspended Pablo Caceres, Tobias Willi, who was moved to defence as an emergency measure, will also not play.

Bommer won't let this count as an excuse though: "In this type of situation, you have to hold your head high and make a statement."

New cellar dweller?

Energie coach Bojan Prasnikar was equally clear about the urgency to win against Duisburg. "This is a true relegation match. Both clubs are in the same position going into it. We need a victory."

A victory would move Energie out of last place in the table. "That would be psychologically very important for us", said captain Timo Rost.

Line-ups:

Cottbus: Piplica - da Silva, Mitreski, Kukielka, Cvitanovic - Basilla - Angelow, Rost - Skela - Sörensen, Rangelow

Duisburg: Starke - Lamey, Schlicke, Grlic, Weber - Maicon (N'Doum), Tararache - Tiffert, Idrissou - Ishiaku, Ailton

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There couldn't be a worse Bundesliga Friday.

Won't be bothered watching this one.

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Friday match result:

Energie Cottbus 1 - 2 Duisburg
7' [0 - 1] B. Schlicke
66' [1 - 1] T. Rost
74' [1 - 2] I. Grlic

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Saturday match results:

Bayer Leverkusen 2 - 2 Borussia Dortmund

40' [0 - 1] M. Petric
51' [1 - 1] T. Gekas
54' [1 - 2] M. Petric
87' [2 - 2] S. Kiessling

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Bochum 1 - 2 Bayern Munich

10' [1 - 0] D. Grote
35' [1 - 1] F. Ribery
78' [1 - 2] B. Schweinsteiger

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Hamburger SV 4 - 1 Stuttgart

7' [1 - 0] I. Olic
23' [2 - 0] I. Olic
33' [3 - 0] I. Olic
60' [4 - 0] J. Mathijsen
73' [4 - 1] S. Tasci

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Hansa Rostock 1 - 1 Schalke

33' [0 - 1] G. Asamoah
56' [1 - 1] M. Stein

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Nurnberg 5 - 1 Eintracht Frankfurt

12' [0 - 1] N. Takahara
20' [1 - 1] A. Charisteas
50' [2 - 1] M. Mintal
53' [3 - 1] Z. Misimovic (pen.)
64' [4 - 1] M. Mintal
83' [5 - 1] J. Kennedy

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Werder Bremen 3 - 2 Hertha BSC

57' [1 - 0] H. Almeida
61' [1 - 1] Gilberto
62' [2 - 1] M. Rosenberg
74' [3 - 1] L. Andreasen
90' [3 - 2] S. Okoronkwo

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Sunday match results:

Hannover 2 - 2 Wolfsburg

21' [0 - 1] M.d.S. Marcelinho
28' [1 - 1] S. Pinto
29' [1 - 2] A. Dejagah
35' [2 - 2] M. Tarnat

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Karlsruhe 0 - 0 Arminia Bielefeld

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There was no lack of excitement as the Bundesliga returned after the international break. Leaders Bayern were made to come from behind to beat Bochum, Champions Stuttgart slumped to yet another defeat, while the long awaited Nürnberg win finally came in style.

Bochum stunned Bayern Munich when Dennis Grote fired in a superb strike to give the home side the lead at a packed Rewirpower Stadion. However the visitors pressed forward and their quality finally overcame the effort and industry of the home side.
A cheeky finish from Franck Ribéry before half-time got the Bavarians back into the game and a brave finish from substitute Bastian Schweinsteiger sealed all three points for Ottmar Hitzfeld’s side.

Elsewhere, things continue to go from bad to worse for Champions Stuttgart as they went down to a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Hamburg. Even without captain and playmaker Rafael van der Vaart, the Hanseaten still proved too hot to handle for the clearly struggling Swabians.

Ivica Olic fired the home side into a seventh minute lead after being played in by Zidan. The Croatian grabbed his second after 22 minutes when Demel fired across the goal, and with the VfB defence static, Olic poked home from close range.

Ten minutes before the interval and Olic completed his hat trick. David Jarolim played the ball into the middle and with Osorio playing him onside, Olic fired past Schäfer to put Hamburg fully in control. Shortly before the half time whistle, Stuttgart were reduced to ten men when Pavel Pardo saw red for a challenge on Jarolim.

Down to ten men and clearly out of the game, Stuttgart duly went 4-0 down when Joris Mathijsen headed in a Trochowski cross. Serdar Tasci pulled back a consolation for Armin Veh’s side on 73 minutes.

Werder Bremen climb to second in the table after a 3-2 home win over Hertha Berlin. A goalless first half was more than compensated with five goals in the second period. Hugo Almeida fired the home side in front after 57 minutes, only for Lucien Favre’s side to equalise four minutes later through Brazilian Gilberto.

However straight from the re-start Werder got their noses back in front with substitute Markus Rosenberg firing in after Diego had played in Hugo Almeida. The scoring wasn’t over however as the visitors grabbed a late goal through Okoronkwo.

Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund shared four goals in a 2-2 draw at the Bay-Arena. Mladen Petric gave the visitors the lead after 41 minutes only for Greek striker Theofanis Gekas to get the home side level after 52 minutes.

Dortmund got themselves in front once again when Petric took two bites of the cherry to beat Rene Adler after Lukas Sinkiewicz had unwittingly let the Croatian international in on goal. A late headed goal from Stefan Kießling however rescued a point for Michael Skibbe’s side on 86 minutes.

Nürnberg responded to the calls from trainer Hans Meyer to get their season up and running with an emphatic 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt. Greek striker Angelos Charisteas set the home side on their way after 20 minutes, while four second half goals completed the rout. Marek Mintal grabbed a brace, Zvjezdan Misimovic fired in a penalty, while Joshua Kennedy completed the rout after 86 minutes with the fifth. Japanese star Takahara had given the away side a 12th minute lead, but that was the only thing the visitors had to smile about this afternoon.

Mirko Slomka will be disappointed to watch his Schalke side held away at Hansa Rostock. Gerald Asamoah gave the Königsblauen the lead after 33 minutes. Minutes earlier the visitors were extremely lucky not to have had Marcelo Bordon sent off after the centre back brought down Agali with the striker clean through on goal.

To their credit Rostock fought back well in the second period and secured a point when Marc Stein took advantage of a poor Neuer throw-out to grab the equaliser.

Goal.com - Germany - Bundesliga Round-Up: Bayern Come Back, Stuttgart Plummet, Nürnberg Rampant

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Ottmar Hitzfeld is grateful for Franck Ribéry, Armin Veh wants to forget today’s game as quickly as possible, while Thomas Doll is enjoying being Dortmund trainer again following a convincing performance.

Werder Bremen 3 Hertha Berlin 2

Thomas Schaaf: “In the first half we needed to be patient, and in the second period we were more determined and deservedly won. Not so good was that we allowed them so many chances. We should have had the game wrapped up a lot earlier.”

Lucien Favre: “Unfortunately we missed too many chances at the start of the game and in the second half we lost our shape. After our equaliser, we surrendered a goal far too quickly. In the closing stages Werder’s pressure was great and we were simply over-run.”

Bochum 1 Bayern Munich 2

Marcel Koller: “Everyone thought that Bayern would beat us easily, but that wasn’t the case. It’s important that we take this attitude into our next game. We are aware of the situation we are in and will not doubt ourselves and remain patient.”

Ottmar Hitzfeld: “The early lead for Bochum gave them the upper hand. After that we fought back but couldn’t find the way through. But we had a Franck Ribéry in top form- he was the best player on the pitch.”

Hamburg 4 Stuttgart 1

Huub Stevens: “In the first half we were very good. After the sending off, the game was as good as over. That we took our foot off the gas was understandable, but we should not have conceded a goal like that.”

Armin Veh: “Hamburg fully deserved their win. After their opening goal they were more self-assured and pushed home their advantage. We have to forget this game as quickly as possible.”

Bayer Leverkusen 2 Borussia Dortmund 2

Michael Skibbe: “We bossed the game for long periods and created a lot of chances for ourselves, we just lacked composure.”

Thomas Doll: “With our superiority we should have come away with all three points from this game. Internally we were at peace. The main players here at Dortmund stood up were counted today. It’s fun again being Dortmund’s trainer.”

Nürnberg 5 Eintracht Frankfurt 1

Hans Meyer: “The game had two totally different halves. The first half brought what we are used to- namely nervousness and excitement and we had problems at the back. Luckily Frankfurt didn’t punish us in the way they could have. We didn’t really do a lot right, but to convincingly beat a team like Frankfurt at home will improve the mood here. The lads proved they still know how to win.”

Friedhelm Funkel: “There are games that are not so easy to explain. If someone had told me in the first half that we were going to lose 5-1, I wouldn’t have believed them. In the first half we played really well, but the second half began just the way the home side would have wished. After missing a great chance for 3-2 we lost our patience and order.”

Hansa Rostock 1 Schalke 1

Mirko Slomka: “The points were dropped thanks to one individual error and I’ll be talking with Manuel tomorrow, but it could have happened to anyone. A nine point deficit on Bayern is not massive but we have to fight and try to stay in the hunt.”

Frank Pagelsdorf: “I thought in the first half that we had to be more adventurous going forward and raise the tempo. We were too passive in the first period. In the end you have to look at the two halves together and say that we deserved a draw.”

Goal.com - Germany - Bundesliga Saturday Reactions

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Hannover shared four goals in an interesting Niedersachsen derby with Wolfsburg, while high flying Karlsruhe were held to a goalless draw at home to Arminia Bielefeld.

Hannover 2 Wolfsburg 2
Karlsruhe 0 Arminia Bielefeld 0

The Niedersachsen derby between Hannover and VfL Wolfsburg ended all-square in an entertaing game at the AWD Arena.

The first twenty minutes were forgettable and provided little action and no indication as to the excitement that was to come.

In the 21st minute Wolfsburg's Brazilian midfield playmaker Marcelinho went on a mazy run, and after playing a clever one-two with Grafite, took on Fahrenhorst before cooly slotting past Robert Enke in the Hannover goal. The goal was just the spark the game needed.

Seven minutes later and another moment of magic, this time from Hannover's Sergio Pinto provided the home side with the equaliser. A great ball down the line from Michael Tarnat played in the Portuguese midfielder whose lobbed shot over Jentzsch unluckily hit the post. Fortunately for the home side Pinto was quickest to react and fired in the rebound.

However straight from the kick-off Wolfsburg grabbed their second goal. Marcelinho fed Krzynowek on the left and the Pole's cross found the incoming Dejagah, who beat Tarnat to the ball to poke home from close range. Less than 50 seconds after Hannover's goal and with the stadium announcer still chanting the name of Sergio Pinto the home side were behind again.

The first half scoring wasn't over though as Michael Tarnat grabbed another equaliser for Dieter Hecking's side after 34 minutes. A Sergio Pinto corner was completely missed by Simon Jentzsch in the Wolfsburg goal, but with the danger apparently passed, Josue inadvertently headed the ball back into the six yard box where Tarnat headed in from close range.

The second half didn't live up to the action of the last 25 minutes of the first half although both sides did create chances to grab the winner. Mike Hanke had a few half chances while Marcelinho continued to be a danger. In the end a draw was a fair result.

Over at the Wildparkstadion, Karlsruhe were held to a goalless draw by Arminia Bielefeld in a rather uneventful match. The away side came to defend and they succeeded in their goal of nullifying the home side's attack and gained their first point in four games.

What few chances Karlsruhe had, they were unable to profit from against a resolute Bielefeld back line.

Edmund Becker's sides run of three consecutive wins has been brought to an end and they now find themselves fourth, seven points behind leaders Bayern Munich.

Goal.com - Germany - Bundesliga Wrap: Hannover Held, Karlsruhe Draw Blank

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Table after MD 10:

1. Bayern München - 26 pts
2. Werder Bremen - 20 pts
3. Hamburg SV - 20 pts
4. Karlsruhe SC - 19 pts
5. FC Schalke 04 - 17 pts
6. Hannover 96 - 17 pts
7. Bayer Leverkusen - 15 pts
8. Eintracht Frankfurt - 15 pts
9. VfL Wolfsburg - 13 pts
10. Hertha Berlin - 13 pts
11. Borussia Dortmund - 13 pts
12. Arminia Bielefeld - 11 pts
13. Hansa Rostock - 10 pts
14. VfB Stuttgart - 10 pts
15. FC Nürnberg - 9 pts
16. VfL Bochum - 9 pts
17. MSV Duisburg - 9 pts
18. Energie Cottbus - 4 pts

Champions League
Uefa Cup
Intertoto Cup
Relegation

Top scorers after MD 10:

> Luca Toni > Bayern München > 8 goals
> Miroslav Klose > Bayern München > 8 goals
> Rafael van der Vaart > Hamburg SV > 7 goals
> Boubacar Sanogo > Werder Bremen > 6 goals
> Mladen Petric > Borussia Dortmund > 6 goals

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26.10.07, 20.30h
Eintracht Frankfurt : Hannover 96

27.10.07, 15.30h
VfB Stuttgart : Bayer Leverkusen
FC Schalke 04 : Werder Bremen
Hertha BSC : VfL Bochum
Arminia Bielefeld : Energie Cottbus
VfL Wolfsburg : 1. FC Nürnberg
Hansa Rostock : Karlsruher SC

28.10.07, 17.00h
Borussia Dortmund : Bayern München
MSV Duisburg : Hamburger SV

Bundesliga Table

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Hannover 96 make the trip to Frankfurt hoping to climb into a European spot. bundesliga.de offers information on the Friday night match.

Captain Ioannis Amanatidis is still struggling to find an explanation.

A "different face" against 96?

"Whenever we get the chance to establish ourselves in the top third of the table we completely blow it. Something happens in our head", the Greek international said and promised to make up for the 5-1 defeat in Nuremberg.

Coach Friedhelm Funkel announced that his team would show a "different face" against Hanover on Friday (20:30) after just one win from five matches.

"That can happen in football"

"It's out of our heads. That can happen in football, it won't break us", Funkel declared.

Such problems are strange to 96 coach Dieter Hecking. 96 are self-assured after four unbeaten matches and ten points from five away games.

Attacking football

Hecking is going for three points and attacking football. "That's what my team are doing best at the moment."

A win would lift Hanover into fourth spot, their best position since returning to the Bundesliga five years ago.

Present for Tarnat?

And it would be an early present for former German international Michael Tarnat who celebrates his 38th birthday on Saturday.

Frankfurt have to overcome some difficulties before they can think of celebrations. Mehdi Mahdavikia (torn muscle) is ruled out, Christoph Spycher (calf) is doubtful.

Line-ups as expected:

Frankfurt: Pröll - Ochs, Russ, Kyrgiakos, Spycher (Preuß) - Inamoto, Fink - Streit, Meier, Takahara - Amanatidis.

Hanover: Enke - Cherundolo, Vinicius, Fahrenhorst, Tarnat - Balitsch, Schulz - Rosenthal, Pinto, Huszti - Hanke.

Referee: Manuel Gräfe (Berlin)

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Friday match result:

Eintracht Frankfurt 0 - 0 Hannover