Bundesliga, Week 3 wrap: Mainz remain perfect, Hoffenheim and Hertha Berlin still unbeaten
Mainz remained perfect on Saturday, while Hoffenheim and Hertha Berlin remain in the ranks of the unbeaten.
Hoffenheim 3 - 3 Freiburg
The second match of the day to see three red cards also saw each team score three goals in a thrilling shootout. Kevin Volland drew a penalty in the 10th minute, and Sejad Salihovic stepped up and converted the shot. One minute later, the Bosnian was sent off for slapping Freiburg’s Julian Schuster. Freiburg quickly capitalized, with Oliver Sorg scoring just minutes later.
Volland made it 2-1 in favor of Hoffenheim in the 25th minute, but Karim Abdul-Jabbar Guédé would respond for Freiburg within minutes. Once again, the match was tied. Soon, the number of men on the field was level after Francis Coquelin was shown his second yellow card and sent off in the 42nd minute.
Freiburg took the lead in the 65th minute through Sebastian Freis. The forward got onto the end of Jonathan Schmid’s corner to make it 3-2 in favor of Freiburg. Tobias Strobl scored a great goal a few minutes later to earn a 3-3 draw for Hoffenheim. In the final moments of the game, Admir Mehmedi was sent off for dissent from the sidelines. He was substituted earlier in the match
The point maintains Hoffenheim’s unbeaten run to start the season, while it is the first for Freiburg this season.
Mainz 2 - 0 Wolfsburg
Mainz remained perfect on Saturday with a 2-0 win over Wolfsburg. Things were relatively calm in the first half, but they quickly deteriorated in the second half. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting pounced on a loose ball in the box and smashed it into the back of the net to give Mainz the 1-0 lead in the 61st minute. A few minutes later, Wolfsburg’s Luiz Gustavo was sent off for receiving his second yellow card.
In the 78th minute, Nicolai Müller continued his amazing start to the season with another goal to give him his league leading fourth goal of the year.
Mainz are in fourth place in the table, but level on points with the three sides above them. Wolfsburg only have three points after their first three matches.
Hertha Berlin 1 - 0 Hamburg
Jos Luhukay’s side grabbed another big win on Saturday, beating Hamburg 1-0. Adrián Ramos had a simple tap-in after Nico Schulz laid the ball to him right in front of an open net. Hamburg nearly equalized shortly after the goal, but Thomas Kraft came up huge to deny Maxi Beister from point blank range.
Hertha now have seven points after three games and will travel to Wolfsburg next week. The noose around Thorsten FInk’s next must be tightening as Hamburg have only one point from their first three games.
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