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"A victory for Bayern Munich" is becoming the norm once again in the Bundesliga, following a shaky start to their season, but it's the happenings at Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and Cologne that's creating all the talking points.
Last week, we saw Peter Stoger lose his job at Cologne, while this week, we’ve seen another Bundesliga coach dismissed following a poor run of results. Peter Bosz was officially relieved of his duties at Borussia Dortmund on Sunday morning, to be replaced by, who? None other than Stoger.
Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen, Schalke and Borussia Monchengladbach are all making up for their poor campaigns in the 2016/17 season.
That said, here are 5 key talking points from matchday 15 of the Bundesliga:
#5 Heiko Herrlich, Bayer Leverkusen’s saviour
Bayer Leverkusen took all three points at Stuttgart on Friday night as they continue their good run of 10 undefeated Bundesliga games.
Kai Havertz opened the scoring before captain Lars Bender doubled Leverkusen’s lead late on, but it’s perhaps head coach Heiko Herrlich, who deserves the credit.
Behind the scenes, the 46-year-old has transformed Leverkusen from a crisis club who finished 12th under Roger Schmidt and Tayfun Korkut last season, to a club that is now a serious contender to compete for a place in Europe once again.
And against newly-promoted Stuttgart – who remained unbeaten at home before Friday’s defeat – Herrlich got the tactics spot on.
Instead of fielding their normal 4-4-2, Leverkusen opted to match their opponents' 3-4-3 formation which proved problematic for Stuttgart. Rather than pressing high up the pitch as we’ve seen so often this season from Herrlich’s Leverkusen, they sat back and countered with the pacey Leon Bailey being the main outlet for Bayer, who recorded both assists.
Following their slow start to the 2017/18 Bundesliga campaign which saw Leverkusen pick up just one win in five, the 2002 Champions League finalists have really turned their season around with five wins and five draws – carry that on and Herrlich may just qualify for Europe once again.
#4 One in, one out at Borussia Dortmund
On the other end of the scale, we have Peter Bosz and Borussia Dortmund. Taking over from Thomas Tuchel in the summer, the former Ajax head coach has suffered a disastrous run of just one win in 13 fixtures, which came against third-tier FC Magdeburg in the DFB Pokal.
Far too often has Bosz survived another matchday, especially after that 4-4 draw against Ruhr rivals, Schalke 04, but on Saturday, his time was finally up.
Against a relegation-threatened Werder Bremen, Dortmund were far from convincing for the umpteenth time this season.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s equaliser sandwiched between a Maximilian Eggestein strike and Theodor Gebre Selassie's headed effort, wasn’t enough to save Bosz’ job, who was officially dismissed as Borussia Dortmund’s head coach on Sunday morning, just 15 games into the Bundesliga season.
There had been many question marks who would take charge and while former captain Sebastian Kehl was a close favourite, it was former Cologne head coach Peter Stoger who was announced as head coach until the end of the season.
Although not an expected appointment, it’s one that makes sense from a Dortmund point of view. They have a coach who over-achieved last season with an average side in Cologne, who were defensively-astute. His presence at a club with better players at his disposal may well see Dortmund climb the table.
#3 Freiburg heap more misery on rock-bottom Cologne
With the sacking of Peter Stoger after their 2-2 draw against Schalke and a UEFA Europa League exit after a defeat to Red Star Belgrade on Thursday, it’s as though football in Cologne couldn’t get any worse. But unfortunately, it has.
After a delayed kick-off due to snow, bottom-placed Cologne took on Freiburg, who had picked up just one point away from home all season. Sat just one place above Cologne, Christian Streich found his side 3-0 down against the Billy Goats after just 30 minutes in a game that finally looked promising for Cologne.
Coached by Stefan Ruthenbeck until the winter break, Cologne fans couldn’t have asked for a better start. They dominated play while being very prolific going forward, it finally looked as though they were gaining confidence.
But as luck would have it, their balloon soon burst. Nils Petersen – who’s generally known as the super-sub – started for Freiburg, getting them back into the game just before the break with a beautifully timed volley.
From then on – as has been the case this season – Cologne capitulated. They soon found themselves just 3-2 up after looking so comfortable before concentration faded in the closing stages.
Salih Ozcan gifted Freiburg a penalty in the 90th minute that Petersen tucked away, before Sehrou Guirassy then handled the ball in the area – for no reason – allowing Petersen to complete his hat-trick that saw Freiburg pick up three points, overturning a three-goal deficit.
For Cologne, with 3 points from 15 games, their time in the Bundesliga looks to be over.
#2 Race for Europe as it stands
While it looks as though the Bundesliga title is as good as done, the race for a place in Europe most certainly isn’t.
Despite the poor performance at Eintracht Frankfurt, Jupp Heynckes’ Bayern Munich clinched yet another three points with a single goal Arturo Vidal which now puts the current champions eight points ahead of their nearest title rivals, RB Leipzig.
After being eliminated from the UEFA Champions League and dropping to the UEFA Europa League Round of 32, Ralph Hasenhuttl’s RB Leipzig could only manage a draw at home to Mainz, despite leading twice.
Kevin Kampl and Timo Werner scored the goals for Leipzig, while Emil Bergreen's late goal for Mainz shared the points. That means Hasenhuttl now finds his team winless in three while Schalke and Borussia Monchengladbach are breathing down their necks.
Both Schalke’s Domenico Tedesco and Gladbach’s Dieter Hecking deserve plaudits this season, with the two clubs sitting in second and third respectively.
It certainly wouldn’t be surprising if we saw at least one of these teams in the Champions League next season while the uncertainty surrounding Borussia Dortmund could well see them miss out.
And just like the above, we could be seeing Bayer Leverkusen in Europe again if Heiko Herrlich can keep up their good fortunes.
#1 What’s going on at Hoffenheim?
One team that did qualify for the UEFA Champions League last season was Julian Nagelsmann’s TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, and while their form this season isn’t a cause for concern just yet, their run of just two wins in nine Bundesliga games needs addressing.
Their latest defeat coming away at newly-promoted Hannover 96 on Sunday afternoon, Nagelsmann has yet to be able to get this Hoffenheim side fulfilling their potential this season.
While injuries to key players haven’t helped the cause, the front three of Hoffenheim’s attack haven’t been as prolific as they were last season, despite the addition of Serge Gnabry.
Built around a good defence last season, Hoffenheim have already conceded 20 goals in just 15 games while their +5-goal difference could play a major role in deciding who gets into Europe, if they finish on level points with another team come May.
Despite sitting sixth, one thing that Hoffenheim do have going for them at the minute, is Nagelsmann. His rise to the top has been a great narrative for the past 18 months but it will take some persuading to keep him at the club next season.
The 30-year-old is widely expected to be Jupp Heynckes’ successor at Bayern Munich while the uncertainty around Borussia Dortmund is also likely to create a tug-of-war throughout the summer.
