Frankfurt win Hessen derby as last gasp Augsburg down Bremen
February 6, 2017
Augsburg 3–2 Werder Bremen
(Gebre Selassie 26’, Schmid 28’, Kruse 65’, Koo 79‘, Bobadilla 90‘)
The home side were looking to complete the double over Werder and they created the best chance in the opening stages. Raul Bobadilla swiveled to meet Halil Altintop’s cross, but his stinging shot was parried by Felix Wiedwald. The Paraguayan striker caused plenty of problems for the Bremen back line, but couldn’t make the most of several decent opportunities.
Augsburg were made to pay for that profligacy when Bremen took the lead on 26 minutes. Thomas Delaney headed a Junuzovic free-kick back into the middle and Czech defender Theodor Gebre Selassie prodded home. The lead lasted barely two minutes however, as Jonathan Schmid equalized following good work from Bobadilla. Chances started to flow thick and fast for both sides in an entertaining first half, but the teams went into the break with the scores level.
The game lost a bit of its sting at the start of the second half but bounced back into life just after the hour mark. Serge Gnabry was upended in the area by Martin Hinteregger and Bremen were awarded a penalty. Max Kruse made no mistake from the spot. The goal was Werder’s 3,000th in the Bundesliga but it wasn’t enough to secure three vital points in the battle to avoid the drop.
With just over ten minutes remaining, Ja-Cheol Koo stole in behind the defense to convert a Paul Verhaegh cross as Augsburg equalized for a second time. Bremen only had themselves to blame not making the most of their second-half chances and they were punished right at the death. Augsburg’s standout player Raul Bobadilla completed the comeback and made it 3-2 in stoppage time.
Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 SV Darmstadt 98
(Hasebe (pen) 74', Rebic 83')
A late Makoto Hasebe penalty and Ante Rebic's first Bundesliga goal made the difference for Frankfurt in a cagey Hessenderby with few clear chances on either side.
Darmstadt coach Torsten Frings made one change from his side's 1-6 hammering at home to Cologne last week, Artem Fedetskyy replacing Sandro Sirigu, and the Lillies delivered a much more solid performance in the first half in the derby.
Indeed, the visitors came closest to opening the scoring when Jan Rosenthal chipped over the bar after pouncing on a loose clearance from returning Frankfurt goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky. Darmstadt came close again when Peter Niemeyer fired over after Terrence Boyd brought the ball down from a corner.
In addition to Hradecky, Ante Rebic also returned to the Eintracht starting eleven and looked one of the more likely Frankfurt players to convert their first half possession into a goal, but Darmstadt remained solid in the face of the Croatian's driving runs and the game remained goalless at the break.
The hosts made the more lively start to the second half and there were appeals for a penalty when Fedetskyy slid in on Rebic in the box, but referee Manuel Gräfe correctly ruled that the defender won the ball.
Sat in a disciplined 4-4-2 system, Darmstadt were making life difficult for Niko Kovac's team who lacked the inspiration to break them down. Perhaps a set-piece would bring the breakthrough? But when Frankfurt were awarded a free-kick on the edge of the box, Alex Meier fired Bastian Oczipka's back-heel into the wall.
Frankfurt did have the ball in the net five minutes after the hour-mark but the flag was correctly raised for offside against Timothy Chandler, before Esser tipped dangerman Rebic's low drive around the post, as the hosts' frustration grew.
Then came the second Frankfurt penalty claim when Alexander Milosevic dragged down Jesus Vallejo in the box and this time Gräfe didn't hesitate to point to the spot. Milosevic saw yellow before Hasebe calmly slotted home to give the hosts the lead.
They doubled their lead nine minutes later. Meier rounded Esser and was forced wide but his cut-back was bundled over the line by the Rebic, capping off an impressive performance with his first Bundesliga goal as Eintracht went back up to third in the league.
Re-live Sunday's action as it happened: