RSSHoffenheim Related Content
The Bundesliga sees three brilliant matches take place this weekend
The season is drawing ever closer to the finish line; Borussia Dortmund remains on top and is almost all but certain of winning the Bundesliga with a five point lead over second placed Bayern.
Dortmund begins a tough round of closing fixtures with a home match against Stuttgart. Bayern plays Nuremberg in the Franconian-Bavarian derby. Hannover plays Borussia Mönchengladbach in what is perhaps the most intriguing match of the weekend. Schalke, after having been shocked by Athletic Bilbao in the Europa League on Thursday plays Hoffenheim.
Nuremberg-Bayern
Nowadays...
Markus Babel revisits Munich as head coach of Hoffenheim
Markus Babel pays a second trip to Bavaria to his former club and perhaps the one he dreams to coach one day.
Markus Babel’s desire to become the head-coach of Germany’s biggest club one-day (yes, they are still Germany’s biggest club) is no secret. However, he rarely manages to impress on his trips to Bavaria. His last trip there ended in disaster. His former club, Hertha was taught a lesson in football that day.If there was any time that Babel could boost his CV for perhaps this very job, this is it. Bayern’s current run of poor form is seemingly endless with each away display poorer than the former. The home displays have generally been good. Bayern has won every home game by a 2-0 margin in 2012.
Bundesliga Review: A Weekend of Sackings, Hirings and Improvements
The Bundesliga coaching carousel has begun once again. Holger Stanislawski and Michael Skibbe lost their jobs while Markus Babel returned to the Bundesliga just four match-days after his sacking.
Hoffenheim looked like a ‘life-less’ side match after match. The club had seemingly taken all the energies out of a lively and energetic Holger Stanislawski. Hoffenheim was sinking deeper and deeper into trouble with every passing week and a change had to be made. Hoffenheim then made a ‘safe’ decision and brought in the Bavarian Markus Babel.Babel very nearly earned a win for his side in his opening match but was denied by Marko Arnautovic in the 89th minute of the contest against Bremen. Babel’s two former clubs meanwhile played out a one sided contest in Swabia. Stuttgart battered Hertha 5-0. The match saw the reign of Michael Skibbe come to a disappointing end after the coach failed to win a single game in his short tenure.
Bundesliga Review: Stuttgart, Köln, Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim battered by title contenders
Bayern continues to lead the way on goal difference in the Bundesliga. None of the four teams which are contenders for the salad bowl dropped points this week.
Schalke was on the verge of losing their connection with the top four. Lukas Podolski struck in the fourth minute and Köln took the lead into half-time. Köln actually held on till the hour mark but Schalke found a way. An unlikely source in the form of Ciprian Marica scored the equalizer. Then, Schalke started compounding misery on Köln.Marica grabbed a second 12 minutes later. Klaas Jan Huntelaar scored from the penalty spot just six minutes after the second goal. Benjamin Höger added one more just four minutes after the third. Now, that is what you call an ‘attacking force’. While their Ruhr rivals aren’t exactly scoring for fun, they are scoring quite a few too.
Bundesliga Mid Season Review 2011-12
The Final Weekend of 2011 in the Bundesliga ended with plenty of drama as Markus Babbel was sacked as coach of Hertha Berlin.
Markus Babbel is an ambitious man. He spent long years as a player with Bayern and Liverpool and thus has a winning mentality. He perhaps saw Hertha as a club that was not going to move forward. As a result, he opted not to extend his contract and he said as much to Hertha’s general manager Michael Preetz. Preetz according to Babbel refused to be truthful to the media. Babbel was sacked this week. He will be replaced by Michael Skibbe. Hertha’s final result under Babbel was a 1-1 draw against Hoffenheim in Sinsheim. Hertha is seated not too securely in mid table. Babel’s former team meanwhile secured the Autumn Championship in Bavaria.
Liverpool Transfer News: Babel Now At Hoffenheim
Ryan Babel is now officially a Hoffenheim player. The German club confirmed that they had successfully finalized a deal with Liverpool for the former Ajax player.
This somehow came as a surprise to the majority of Liverpool fans, who knew that Babel was going nowhere—just a few days ago. The Reds’ coach Kenny Dalglish himself affirmed that the Dutchman was staying at Anfield after turning down an offer from Hoffenheim, but latest reports now bring up a totally different story.The statement on the Bundesliga side’s official website read: "We are very proud to be able to get Ryan Babel—an internationally experienced player from a top club like Liverpool—to Hoffenheim.”
German Bundesliga Corner: Schalke 04 Confident, Werder Bremen Making Business
The German Bundesliga is finally back this weekend and Schalke 04 Coach Felix Magath is full of confidence ahead of his side’s opening match against Hamburg. Meanwhile, Werder Bremen are reportedly busy on the market as a transfer for Santos player Wesley looks imminent.
Hamburg SV vs Schalke 04 – Coach Felix Magath Doesn’t Entertain Fears
Statements from the manager on Schalke 04’s official website reveal how keen Felix Magath is ahead of the 2010/2011 German Bundesliga season. The former Wolfsburg boss stated:
“I’m glad that the time for preparation is over. I’d rather play away after a long summer break; the home team is under more pressure to win. I think we hold a good chance.
“Like in our team, the Hamburg squad has changed. They have strengthened.” But as Hamburg have shown defensive weakness, the Schalke 04 coach added: