Hoffenheim v Hannover
Andrej Kramaric hat trick lifts Hoffenheim into top four
Andrej Kramaric scored a brilliant hat trick as Hoffenheim moved into the Champions League places with a 3-1 victory over Hannover.
Julian Nagelsmann's team won a third straight Bundesliga game to move into the top four ahead of Bayer Leverkusen, who can regain fourth spot with a victory over Stuttgart on Saturday.
It was Croatian Kramaric who opened the scoring in the 16th minute when Salif Sane's woeful back-pass was seized upon by Serge Gnabry, allowing him to present Kramaric with a tap-in.
The visitors replied soon after, though, as ex-Hoffenheim midfielder Pirmin Schwegler squared for Kenan Karaman to level.
Ex-Leicester striker Kramaric restored Hoffenheim's lead after the break, having been left all alone to drive home an unstoppable right-footed volley direct from Kerem Demirbay's corner.
And Kramaric wrapped up the victory four minutes from time by collecting a long clearance on his chest and lifting over goalkeeper Philipp Tschauner from 25 yards out after the keeper had been caught off his line.
Game Information
German Bundesliga Standings
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bayern Munich | 30 | 25 | 4 | 1 | +80 | 79 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 30 | 19 | 7 | 4 | +30 | 64 |
| RB Leipzig | 30 | 18 | 5 | 7 | +22 | 59 |
| VfB Stuttgart | 30 | 17 | 5 | 8 | +20 | 56 |
| TSG Hoffenheim | 30 | 16 | 6 | 8 | +15 | 54 |
| Bayer Leverkusen | 30 | 15 | 7 | 8 | +19 | 52 |
| SC Freiburg | 30 | 12 | 7 | 11 | -4 | 43 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 30 | 11 | 9 | 10 | -2 | 42 |
| FC Augsburg | 30 | 10 | 6 | 14 | -16 | 36 |
| Mainz | 30 | 8 | 10 | 12 | -9 | 34 |
| 1. FC Union Berlin | 30 | 8 | 8 | 14 | -18 | 32 |
| FC Cologne | 30 | 7 | 10 | 13 | -7 | 31 |
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 30 | 7 | 10 | 13 | -14 | 31 |
| Hamburg SV | 30 | 7 | 10 | 13 | -15 | 31 |
| Werder Bremen | 30 | 8 | 7 | 15 | -18 | 31 |
| St. Pauli | 30 | 6 | 8 | 16 | -25 | 26 |
| VfL Wolfsburg | 30 | 6 | 6 | 18 | -25 | 24 |
| 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 | 30 | 4 | 7 | 19 | -33 | 19 |
Bundesliga News