The Malta Independent 12 May 2025, Monday
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Schalke gets last CL spot, Duesseldorf relegated

Malta Independent Saturday, 18 May 2013, 19:49 Last update: about 13 years ago

 

Schalke clinched Germany's last Champions League spot by winning 2-1 at Freiburg in the final round of Bundesliga games on Saturday.

Fortuna Duesseldorf was relegated after losing 3-0 at Hannover, but Hoffenheim escaped automatic demotion with a come-from-behind 2-1 win at Borussia Dortmund.

Augsburg took advantage of Duesseldorf's loss by beating bottom side Greuther Fuerth 3-1 to clinch survival, and Eintracht Frankfurt drew 2-2 with Wolfsburg to join Freiburg in next season's Europa League.

Champion Bayern Munich twice came from two goals down to win 4-3 at Borussia Moenchengladbach, equaling its feat from 1986-87 of finishing with an unbeaten away record.

Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen won 1-0 at Hamburger SV thanks to league top-scorer Stefan Kiessling's last minute strike, his 25th of the season.

Stuttgart drew 2-2 at home with Mainz, and Nuremberg beat Werder Bremen 3-2 in the visitors' first game in 14 years without coach Thomas Schaaf.

The 19-year-old Julian Draxler gave Schalke the lead in the 20th, cutting inside a defender from the edge of the area and shooting inside the far post on his 75th Bundesliga appearance.

Jonathan Schmid equalized in the 54th, but any hopes the home side had of leapfrogging Schalke for fourth-place were dashed four minutes later, when Immanuel Hoehn's clearance from Jermaine Jones' shot rebounded off the unfortunate Julian Schuster and in.

Robert Lewandowski claimed his 24th of the campaign for Dortmund from a rebound after Koen Casteels saved Jakub Blaszczykowski's initial effort.

Dortmund dominated the game, but failed to make the most of its chances and Hoffenheim was given a lifeline in the 76th, when Mats Hummels was adjudged to have bundled Kevin Volland over in the area.

Salihovic equalized from the penalty spot a minute later, and the Bosnian displayed cool nerves to blast home another spot kick five minutes later, after Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller was sent off for bringing down Kevin Schipplock.

Juergen Klopp had made his substitutions, so Kevin Grosskreutz — a winger — faced Salihovic for the resultant penalty, but there was little he could do.

Lewandowski had the ball in the net again in injury time, when it looked like Hoffenheim would be relegated after all, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside.

Hoffenheim now faces Kaiserslautern, the third-place finisher in the second division, over two games to determine which side plays top flight football next season.

Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes was given a rousing reception from both sets of fans ahead of his last Bundesliga game in charge.

Heynckes began his career as a prolific striker at home club Moenchengladbach before clocking up 1,011 Bundesliga games as player or coach. The 68-year-old is making way for former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola and has indicated he won't coach in Germany again.

Moenchengladbach got off to a flying start with Martin Stranzl heading past Manuel Neuer in the fourth minute and Mike Hanke slotting past the goalkeeper in the next.

Franck Ribery set Javi Martinez free to pull one back in the seventh, but Havard Nordtveit claimed the home side's third on a counterattack three minutes later.

Ribery saved his side's blushes by slotting inside the near post in the 18th, equalizing with a stunning volley in the 53rd, and then setting up Arjen Robben to score Bayern's fourth goal six minutes later.

On his club record 300th Bundesliga appearance for Hannover, American defender Steve Cherundolo set up Mame Diouf to score in the 36th.

Didier Ya Konan scored Hannover's second in the 61st and sealed Duesseldorf's fate in the 76th.

 
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