By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
FC Bayern München’s 3-2 win over FC St. Pauli on Saturday afternoon ensured their six-point advantage at the top of the Bundesliga table, heading into the Bavarian derby with a resurgent FC Augsburg this Friday.
Harry Kane scored early, and the England captain remains on course for the Torjägerkanone, given to the Bundesliga’s top scorer at the end of every season.
Jess Thorup’s side extended their unbeaten Bundesliga run to 11 matches with a 1-1 draw at TSG Hoffenheim – in which they faced the unfamiliar situation of actually conceding a goal.
Augsburg goalkeeper Finn Dahmen had lasted an incredible 683 minutes of football without having to retrieve the ball from his net until Andrej Kramarić chipped a late penalty over him – the sixth-longest such run in Bundesliga history.
His side’s remarkable form leaves them eighth and targeting European qualification, but Dahmen is likely to be up against a Kane who scored his 22nd goal of the season on Saturday.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen are sure to follow Friday’s tie with intent as they require Bayern to drop points in their remaining matches to keep their title hopes alive. The reigning champions will either be able to gain ground on Bayern or restore the gap to six points with a win at 1. FC Heidenheim on Saturday.
Frank Schmidt’s Heidenheim are showing they are prepared to battle to retain their Bundesliga status, with a 1-0 win at VfL Wolfsburg last weekend lifting them up to 16th and into the play-off spot, but outright safety is still three points away with seven games to go.
Behind the leading two, the battle for European qualifying spots is getting even more intense. Eintracht Frankfurt could go a long way towards securing a top-four berth should they win at SV Werder Bremen on Saturday evening, after a Mario Götze goal clinched a precious 1-0 victory over VfB Stuttgart.
Fourth-placed 1. FSV Mainz 05 will hope to continue their staggering form this season, despite succumbing to a 3-1 defeat at Borussia Dortmund, when they welcome bottom-of the-table Holstein Kiel on Saturday.
Breathing down Mainz’s necks – two points behind – are the big risers of the last matchday. Borussia Mönchengladbach recorded a 1-0 home win over RB Leipzig to leapfrog over them to fifth in the table and go away on Sunday to a St. Pauli side eager to keep a cushion over the bottom three. Alassane Pléa scored the winner against Leipzig to take his tally to four goals in his last two appearances.
Plenty of eyes will be directed towards Leipzig this weekend as Zsolt Lőw takes charge of the side for the first time in the Bundesliga on an interim basis following the dismissal of Marco Rose. Leipzig host Hoffenheim just one point short of Gladbach and three behind Mainz, so a home win is a must if they are to get their European ambitions back on track.
SC Freiburg’s continental hopes suffered a blip with a 2-1 defeat at home to 1. FC Union Berlin, and they now face a side that are forcing their way back into the European equation – 10th-placed Dortmund – in a fascinating Saturday afternoon encounter.
The win in Freiburg gave Union a boost by lifting them eight points clear of 16th-placed Heidenheim and out of any immediate relegation danger. Steffen Baumgart’s side host Wolfsburg in the final encounter of Matchday 28 on Sunday afternoon.
Heidenheim’s win last weekend pushed VfL Bochum 1848 back into the bottom two, but they have a chance to boost their survival chances on Saturday at home to a Stuttgart side who are at risk of falling out of reach of the European qualification spots in 11th.
There’s also no taking your eyes of Bundesliga 2 this season, where only nine points separate 1. FC Köln at the summit and local rivals Fortuna Düsseldorf down in ninth. The leaders host Hertha BSC on Saturday night, while Düsseldorf play host to SC Preußen Münster in one of their ‘Fortuna For All’ games that sees tickets cost supporters nothing.
Elsewhere, Miroslav Klose’s 1. FC Nürnberg in eighth welcome second-placed Hamburger SV and fifth hosts third with 1. FC Magdeburg against 1. FC Kaiserslautern.