Bundesliga matchday 29 recap: Der Klassiker thriller, relegation battles, European hustling, and much more. | OneFootball

It was another thrilling weekend of Bundesliga football during matchday 29. From stuttering at the top to relegation battles as well as several 90th-minute winners, there are plenty of stories to get stuck into. Here is your recap and talking points from matchday 29 in the Bundesliga.

Hoffenheim Safe, Ilzer Not

Hoffenheim captain Andrej Kramarić scored a first-half brace to earn TSG Hoffenheim a huge win 2-0 against Mainz 05. The win puts TSG in 14th on 30 points in what was their first victory in five Bundesliga matches. With a much nicer cushion on the bottom three, you feel that Hoffenheim will be safe this season.

However, the same can’t be said for their head coach, Christian Ilzer. Despite this huge win, it looks to be the case that head coach Christian Ilzer won’t be around beyond the season. As reported by GGFN via Kicker, there appears to be a rift between players and coach that leaves the TSG front office leaning towards sacking Ilzer at the season’s end and installing Paderborn head coach Lukas Kwasniok instead.

Bayer Leverkusen & Bayern Munich Both Stall

Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich both drew this weekend, meaning it’s as you were at the summit of the table. Early on Saturday, B04 were held to a goalless draw at home to Union Berlin. The one positive for B04 was the return of Florian Wirtz, who has been out of action for five weeks through injury. Wirtz played the last 30 minutes but was unable to help them find a winner. When asked whether or not the Bundesliga title race is over, head coach Xabi Alonso said: “The feeling right now is that it’s more difficult. We had a clear situation, and now we have to wait.

“But yes, we had an opportunity today and we missed it, but we still have five games. But the current feeling isn’t euphoria. We need to wait and see but we’re ready for everything and need to accept it.”

Later on Saturday evening, Bayern played out a thrilling 2-2 draw against Borussia Dortmund in Der Klassiker. Though Bayern will be disappointed not to capitalise on B04’s draw, they haven’t lost ground at the same time and remain favourites to win the title.

Speaking after what was his last Der Klassiker Bayern veteran Thomas Müller told Sky Germany: “It was a game of missed opportunities. I could have scored [in the 40th minute]. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that Emré [Can] was on the ground and that cancelled out the offside. I could have taken the ball and scored the 1-0. A 1-0 lead against Dortmund at home might have given us more adrenaline.“

Freiburg Edge Past Gladbach

SC Frieburg scored a late goal to ensure they leapfrog Borussia Mönchengladbach into 6th. The game got off to a flying start, with both goals coming in the 14th and 16th minute. From there, however, it was a cagey affair. However, Johan Manzambi’s 90th-minute header sent the away fans into ecstasy and give Freiburg a huge boost for their European hopes. What’s more, this was Manzambi’s first Freiburg goal, and what a time to get it! Reflecting upon the moment after the game, Manzambi explained:

“There were too many thoughts [in my head after scoring the goal],” noting that an image of his brother flashed in his mind before his teammates (noticing he wasn’t celebrating) jumped all over him, “What kind of goal celebration will I do? He [my brother] always told me that I would score soon. The goal was him today.”

Freiburg now sit in 6th on 45 points, just three points off RB Leipzig in 4th. For Gladbach, all is not lost as they’re in 7th on 44 points. Don’t be surprised to see the European places go all the way to the final matchday of the season.

St. Pauli Win Relegation Battle, Bochum Lose Late On

St. Pauli scored a 90th-minute winner to beat Holstein Keil 1-2 in the Nord Derby on Saturday afternoon. It was a game that Keil could not lose; even a draw wouldn’t be enough in truth. However, St. Pauli scored a scrappy goal right at the death to surely ensure that Keil will go down this season. For Pauli, it was a first Bundesliga win after being a goal down, and now means that they’re 9 points clear of automatic relegation and 7 points clear of the relegation play-off. Relegation.

In the Ruhr region, Bochum lost to ten men FC Augsburg 1-2. Bochum were pushing for a winner, but a sucker punch right at the death inflicts more misery on their campaign. For Bochum, it means they’re still in the automatic relegation places and still two points off Heidenheim in 16th. The likelihood is that Bochum won’t get automatic safety this season. Their best bet is to pip Heidenheim in 16th and battle it out in the relegation play-off.

Around The Grounds

Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, RB Leipzig claimed 4th spot for now after a 2-3 win on Friday evening away at VfL Wolfsburg.

Eintracht Frankfurt breezed past Heidenheim 3-0, whilst Oliver Burke scored twice to earn Werder Bremen an impressive win away at VfB Stuttgart. Now above Stuttgart, Bremen are just three points off 6th – they couldn’t, could they?

GGFN | Jamie Allen