Football action
September 18, 2010
Although Mainz coach Thomas Tuchel claimed he does not look at the league tables much, fans are bound to celebrate the fact that their club has moved to the top of the Bundesliga table for the first time ever, after beating Bremen 2-0 this Saturday.
Marcel Risse and Andre Schuerrle scored the goals for Mainz, both in the second half, giving the club maximum points on the league table.
"I can't remember us ever playing worse than today," Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf admitted after the match. Bremen manager Klaus Allofs said the match "was too bad to be true."
No rhythm for Bayern
Last year's champions Bayern Munich did not have much to celebrate at the start of Oktoberfest. They were held to a goalless draw by Cologne at home.
"We're lacking creativity, there's no rhythm," said defender Phillip Lahm after the match. Bayern have had their worst start to the season for 33 years, with only a paltry two goals under their belt so far.
Although superior to Cologne in terms of ball possession and chances, Bayern could not penetrate Cologne's strong defense. Pressure is mounting now to win against Hoffenheim on Tuesday.
Moenchengladbach thrashed
Stuttgart broke their losing streak in style, with a 7-0 goal-scoring fest against Moenchengladbach, which included a hat-trick by Russia striker Pavel Pogrebniak.
Moenchengladbach, who suffered the worst ever away defeat in the history of the Bundesliga, seemed to fall apart completely in the second half.
"We weren't a team today at all, it was a case of none against 11," defender Tobias Levels said after the match.
In Saturday's other matches, Wolfsburg collected much-needed points with a 2-0 win against Hanover. An overhead kick by Diego put the Wolves in the lead in the 55th minute and Edin Dzeko's goal 12 minutes later sealed the deal.
Hoffenheim drew 2-2 with Kaiserslautern and, on Friday, Freiburg beat Frankfurt 1-0.
Author: Nicole Goebel (dpa/SID/AFP)
Editor: Ben Knight