Matchday 5 in the Bundesliga featured several intriguing games including Bayern Munich against VfL Bochum and Borussia Monchengladbach versus RB Leipzig.
Borussia Dortmund welcomed VfL Wolfsburg to the Signal Iduna Park in another enticing encounter.
Here’s a look at all the events from the Matchday 5 games.
Stuttgart beat Darmstadt to continue their impressive start
Stuttgart have been one of the most impressive sides in the opening weeks of the Bundesliga campaign and continued their bright start.
They went behind after 16 minutes when Darmstadt’s Tim Skarke launched forward down the right channel, sending a cross into the box that Stuttgart defender Dan-Axel Zagadou inadvertently turned into his net.
However, Stuttgart restored parity minutes later. Top scorer Serhou Guirassy spearheaded them to another win on home soil.
The Frenchman played a crucial role in the equaliser, holding the ball up well before teeing Enzo Millot to find the back of the net from inside the box.
Guirassy took the ball from Chris Fuhrich before unleashing a vicious strike into the top corner.
The visitors did not offer much of a fight, and Guirassy finished them off late in the game, dinking the ball over Marcel Schuhen to make it 3-1. Stuttgart remain third in the table.
Bayern beat Bochum 7-0 to move to the top of the table
Bayern ripped Bochum to shreds in their clash. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting opened the scoring. He turned in Kingsley Coman’s cross before Harry Kane made it two minutes later.
Matthijs De Ligt headed in a corner from Joshua Kimmich to make it three. The Dutchman will be rueing his luck after suffering an injury that kept him inside the dressing room for the second half.
Kane sent a gorgeous pass for Leroy Sane in the 37th minute, and the German attacker slotted home the fourth in what looked like a training exercise for Die Rekordmeister.
The England captain netted from the spot in the second half before setting up Mathys Tel for number six.
Kane bagged his hat-trick late on, flicking in Noussair Mazraoui’s cross to complete the humiliating rout.
RB Leipzig leave it late against Borussia Monchengladbach
Leipzig have been one of the most exciting sides in the Bundesliga this season, and they took on one of the most disappointing outfits.
Gladbach are one of the relegation candidates this season after a poor start under Gerardo Seoane, and they suffered another loss this weekend.
They started well, with Rocco Reitz pulling the strings. He had some early opportunities, with one shot deflecting wide and a header from a corner going over the bar.
He also earned a free-kick, but Julian Weigl’s attempt missed the target. He won another free-kick, but Nico Elvedi’s effort upon his return was off-target.
Leipzig loanee Fabio Carvalho tested Moritz Nicolas with a shot, but it remained goalless at half-time.
Xavi Simons set up Lois Openda in the second half, but Nicolas made a crucial save to keep his side in the game. Reitz came close to scoring with a header, but Janis Blaswich tipped his effort over the bar.
Leipzig manager Marco Rose brought on Timo Werner, Yussuf Poulsen and Christoph Baumgartner, and it paid off.
Simons released Werner, who rounded the keeper before scoring from an acute angle, securing the win for his team.
The German international ended the drought that has seen him fail to score in Leipzig’s last ten games.
Marco Reus leads Borussia Dortmund to win over Wolfsburg as they continue their unbeaten start
Dortmund captain and legend Marco Reus was the hero again as they defeated Wolfsburg on Saturday.
BVB had dominated the game but did not get the crucial goal until the second half.
After lovely interplay, Julian Brandt went storming down the left flank before finding Reus in the middle, and he swept it in to secure a vital three points for his side.
Despite all the talk about his age, the German international has been one of the top performers in the Bundesliga this season and received a standing ovation for his showing.
Wolfsburg were second-best against BVB. The result sees them drop out of the European positions. They will hope to bounce back against Eintracht Frankfurt next week.
Bayer Leverkusen beat Heidenheim 4-1 to continue a superb start
Victor Boniface bagged a brace as Leverkusen defeated Heidenheim to maintain their unbeaten start under Xabi Alonso.
The Nigerian international opened the scoring in the ninth minute as he rolled Patrick Mainka to latch onto Exequiel Palacios’ pass and find the back of the net. Leverkusen had control of the game.
However, Eren Dinkci equalised in the second half, continuing his fine form this season. He collected a pass from Jan-Niklas Beste before firing home to restore parity.
Palacios has been one of the most underrated players in the Bundesliga this season and showed his prowess in the 58th minute, slicing the Heidenheim defence with an inch-perfect through pass that Jonas Hofmann dispatched to make it 2-1.
Alejandro Grimaldo won a penalty for his side as he was caught in the box by a late tackle, and Boniface netted his sixth goal of the season.
Leverkusen wrapped up proceedings when Amine Adli raced onto a lovely pass from Grimaldo before dinking over Kevin Muller to seal the win.
They have dropped to second place on goal difference, but they will be unconcerned as there is still a long way to go.
Around the grounds
Urs Fischer’s Union Berlin suffered their fourth straight defeat, losing to TSG Hoffenheim on home soil.
Fresh off their impressive defensive showing against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu, they took on Champions League hopefuls Hoffenheim.
Hoffenheim took the lead from the penalty spot after Leonardo Bonucci pulled Andrej Kramaric back as the Croatian striker tried to pull the trigger.
They soon bagged their second as Maximilian Meier turned in Grischa Promel’s cross. It was Meier’s fourth goal in his last four games.
Elsewhere, Ermedin Demirovic led Augsburg to a 2-1 over Mainz 05.
Ludovic Ajorque gave the 05ers the lead, towering to power in Danny Da Costa’s cross.
Mainz thought they had doubled their lead minutes later as Stefan Bell found the back of the net, but it was ruled out for offside.
Demirovic turned in a goal-mouth scramble to level the scores before bagging a second after being set up by Patric Pfeiffer just before the half-time break.
Augsburg midfielder Arne Engels received a straight red card in the second half after a dangerous tackle as Die Fuggerstadter took home the three points.
Werder Bremen also came back from a goal down to defeat Koln at the Weser Stadium.
David Selke headed Koln into the lead on 31 before Bremen’s Rafael Borre took a pass from Marvin Ducksch and then slotted home to level matters.
Bremen attacker Romano Schmid went on a solo run in the second half, dropping defenders before firing, but Marvin Schwabe stuck out a good hand.
Justin Njinmah came on for goalscorer Borre and scored within a moment of coming onto the pitch as he secured a crucial win.
Eintracht Frankfurt played out a drab 0-0 draw with Freiburg. Freiburg’s Ritsu Doan warned Frankurt and Kevin Trapp with a header before Fares Shaibi forced Noah Atubolu into a fine stop.
Omar Marmoush and Vincenzo Grifo came close to netting, but the match ended in a stalemate.
Player of the week
The player of the week has to be Kane, who bagged a hat-trick and two assists to help Bayern climb to the top of the Bundesliga table.
The Englishman has bagged seven goals and three assists in his first five games in the German league following his blockbuster move from Tottenham Hotspur.
Games to watch on Matchday 6
The pick of the bunch from next week’s matches is the clash between Leipzig and Bayern. Both teams are in the title race, and it should make for a spectacle.
Another fixture to look forward to is the match between Hoffenheim and Dortmund. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top in this one.
Wolfsburg versus Frankfurt is another exciting fixture for next week.
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