Berlin win, Leverkusen tie in Bundesliga
Berlin, Dec 18 (IANS) Ten-men Hertha Berlin overpowered Leipzig 3-2 owing to the brace from Davie Selke while Bayer Leverkusen shared the spoils with Hannover following a 4-4 draw at the closer of the 17th round in Bundesliga football championship.
Selke’s brace against his former club Leipzig on Sunday helped Berlin to wrap up the second win in a row before the winter break, reports Xinhua news agency.
The visitors from the capital needed only six minutes to break the deadlock as Alexander Esswein’s square pass found Selke, who curled the ball into the top right corner.
It was a short-lived joy for Berlin though as defender Jordan Torunarigha received his marching orders following a professional foul to Timo Werner in the 7th minute.
However, the hosts were unable to capitalise on their numerical advantage as Salomon Kalou headed home a free kick from Valentino Lazaro to double the lead with 31 minutes played.
Berlin continued to play as if they still had all 11 men on the pitch as Selke sealed his brace six minutes into the second half after Leipzig failed to clear a corner kick from Lazaro.
Leipzig pressed for a goal but they remained uninspired in front of Berlin’s goal. The hosts eventually pulled one back when Willi Orban headed home a cross at the near post in the 68th minute.
Berlin defended deep in their territory but they were hapless when Marcel Halstenberg headed home Leipzig’s second goal to reduce the arrears to one goal. The second goal came too late for the hosts as Berlin snatched all three points.
With the result, Leipzig suffered the fifth loss of the season to slump to the fifth place meanwhile Berlin jumped on the 10th position of the Bundesliga standings.
Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen and newly promoted Hannover shared the spoils following a 4-4 draw as Julia Korb marked the late leveller. The lead changed three times but Leon Bailey’s second-half brace wasn’t enough to secure a win for Bayer Leverkusen.
