Nicolai Mueller helped Hamburg secure a 2-2 draw at Hoffenheim while Eintracht Frankfurt bounced back to beat Werder Bremen 2-1 in the 11th round of the German Bundesliga.
Bottom-dwelling Hamburg snapped their two-game losing streak as Mueller restored parity after Hoffenheim's comeback on Sunday, reports Xinhua.
Hoffenheim took the control from the kick off, making the visitors defend deep in their territory. Julian Nagelsmann's men worked out a number of scoring opportunities, but neither Andrej Kramaric nor Pavel Kaderabek were able to break the deadlock.
Hamburg punished the hosts' wastefulness at the other end of the pitch, as Filip Kostic marked the opener after nutmegging Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann following a solo run in the 28th minute.
However, Hoffenheim responded with the equaliser before the break when Sandro Wagner poked home a corner kick from Kerem Demirbay.
The hosts grabbed a bright start into the second half as Kaderabek provided a pinpoint cross, which allowed Steven Zuber to turn the tide in the 49th minute. Nevertheless, last placed Hamburg stood firm and responded well to the setback as Mueller leveled the score after completing a fast break in the 61st minute.
Wagner had the chance to snatch the lead but his injury-time effort missed the target just wide.
With this result, Hoffenheim dropped from the 3rd to the 5th position, while Hamburg remain on last place in the standings.
Elsewhere, Werder Bremen gave away a narrow lead as Frankfurt marked two second-half goals to secure a 2-1 victory on the road.
Bremen broke the deadlock through Florian Grilitisch, who unleashed a well-placed shot into the top left corner with 38 minutes played.
The visitors turned up after the restart when substitute Alexander Meier made it 1-1, just six minutes after his fielding, in the 52nd minute.
Frankfurt were not done with the scoring and ensured the winner in the dying minutes of the game as Aymen Barkok curled the ball from 20 meters into the top left to put the result beyond doubt.
Despite the victory, Frankfurt remain at the seventh place while Bremen stay 17th, which is a relegation play-off spot.
--IANS
ajb/vt
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
