Bundesliga 2, Matchday 8: Wolfsburg defeat Heidenheim after Holstein Kiel hold leaders Hertha Berlin
Wolfsburg got the better of Heidenheim in the teams' first meeting since their relegation from the top flight, while Bundesliga 2 leaders Hertha Berlin dropped their first points of the season at Holstein Kiel.
Wolfsburg 3-1 Heidenheim
Goals: 1-0 Bernhardsson 1’, 1-1 Mainka 21’, 2-1 Glatzel 45’+1
Alexander Bernhardsson scored the fastest goal of the Bundesliga 2 season so far as the Wolves defeated Heidenheim at the Volkswagen Arena. Bernhardsson opened the scoring with a low drive from the edge of the box, but the visitors levelled when Patrick Mainka nodded Jan Schöppner’s flick-on into the corner. Robert Glatzel’s 99th Bundesliga 2 goal restored Wolfsburg’s lead on the stroke of half-time, before Muhammed Damar completed the scoring late on.
Karlsruhe 4-0 Darmstadt
Goals: 1-0 Fukuda 6’, 2-0 Wanitzek 13’, 3-0 Kobald 50’, 4-0 Wiethaup 65‘
After three consecutive league games without a goal, Karlsruhe inflicted Darmstadt’s joint-heaviest ever defeat under coach Florian Kohfeldt on Matchday 8. Clinical in front of goal, Shio Fukuda opened the scoring with the hosts’ first shot on goal, before Marvin Wanitzek added a second minutes later. After the restart, it was more of the same, with Christoph Kobald netting Karlsruhe’s third of the afternoon and Kevin Wiethaup completing the rout. Captain Wanitzek was the hero of the day, assisting both Karlsruhe’s first and third, in addition to getting himself on the scoresheet.
Dynamo Dresden 2-0 Magdeburg
Goals: 1-0 Hauptmann 9’ (pen.), 2-0 Straudi 50’
Hosts Dynamo claimed bragging rights over Magdeburg with a comfortable 2-0 win in the ‘Elb-Clasico’. Though Magdeburg started the brighter of the sides, the hosts raced to an early advantage after Niklas Hauptmann converted a penalty which had been awarded for Tobias Müller’s foul on Nicolai Rapp. After relying on counter-attacking for much of the first half, Dynamo began the second half with renewed intent, doubling their lead through Simon Straudi’s powerful finish, which established a lead that proved too steep for Magdeburg to overturn.
Kaiserslautern 2-0 Bochum
Goals: 1-0 Luković 31’, 2-0 Şahin 75’ (pen)
Kaiserslautern recorded their sixth clean sheet of the season, and extended their unbeaten run at the Fritz-Walter-Stadion to four games, by overcoming Bochum. Christian Rasmussen spurned an early opportunity for the visitors before debutant Miloš Luković struck with a composed finish shortly afterwards. Semih Şahin confidently converted a penalty with 15 minutes remaining to inflict a third straight defeat on Bochum.
Arminia Bielefeld 2-1 Osnabrück
Goals: 0-1 Meißner 16’, 1-1 Bauer 26’, 2-1 Rochelt 85’
Jannik Rochelt scored late on as Bielefeld came from behind to defeat neighbours Osnabrück and move into the top half of the table. Robin Meißner capitalised on Stefano Russo’s early error to put the visitors ahead, but Maximilian Bauer’s header restored parity just 10 minutes later. Just as the game appeared set to end in a draw, Monju Momuluh picked out Rochelt to power a header into the net from close range and clinch all three points for Arminia.
Greuther Fürth 2-0 Eintracht Braunschweig
Goals: 1-0 Klaus 32’, 2-0 Klaus 63’
Greuther Fürth celebrated their first home win of the season thanks to a Felix Klaus brace against Eintracht Braunschweig. It was the visitors who started the stronger of the sides, but the Lions were unable to convert several good chances in the early stages. The Clover Leaves grew into the game as Klaus opened the scoring with a lethal finish before completing his brace in the second half.
Hannover 1-1 St. Pauli
Goals: 1-0 Ceesay 45’+1, 1-1 Chakroun 48’
Hannover recorded their first point under Sandro Wagner after coming from behind to draw with St. Pauli. The Reds started brightly as Husseyn Chakroun had an early goal chalked off for offside, before Abdoulie Ceesay headed St. Pauli into an unexpected lead just before the break. However, Chakroun quickly cancelled that out within minutes of the restart. Ceesay then hit the post in an evenly contested end to the game, with St. Pauli preserving their unbeaten away record.
Holstein Kiel 0-0 Hertha Berlin
League leaders Hertha Berlin were held to a goalless draw by struggling Holstein Kiel, putting an end to the capital club's seven-game winning start to the campaign. The Old Lady were dominant throughout, amassing an xG of 2.12, with Luca Schuler, Sebastian Grønning and Oluwaseun Adewumi all going close multiple times, only to be denied at each turn by Kiel custodian Timon Weiner, who delivered an inspired performance between the sticks to clinch a valuable point for the struggling Storks.
Energie Cottbus 1-1 Nuremberg
Goals: 1-0 Butler 56', 1-1 Mkrtchyan 79'
Nuremberg extended their unbeaten start to the season to eight league matches after coming from behind to draw at mid-table Energie Cottbus. Energie’s King Manu and Nuremberg’s William Bøving hit the woodwork in a keenly contested first half. Justin Butler headed over soon after the restart, before converting from close range to give Cottbus the lead. Nuremberg deservedly levelled with 79 minutes gone, though, with Styopa Mkrtchyan firing in from 10 yards to keep Miroslav Klose’s side in second place for another week at least.
Watch: The top 5 goals from Matchday 8
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