Hertha crash as Bayern, Wolfsburg close gap at top of Bundesliga

Hertha crash as Bayern, Wolfsburg close gap at top of Bundesliga Hamburg - Hertha Berlin saw their lead at the top of the Bundesliga slashed to one point after they slipped to a 2-0 defeat at Stuttgart on Saturday, while Bayern Munich and Wolfsburg both won.

Champions Bayern overcame bottom side Karlsruhe 1-0 thanks to a goal from Argentinian Jose Ernesto Sosa, while Wolfsburg made it seven league wins in a row with a 3-0 victory at Arminia Bielefeld.

Hertha have 49 points, with Bayern and Wolfsburg joint second on 48 with the same goal difference and goals scored.

Stuttgart responded from a 4-0 thrashing at Werder Bremen last week by hitting leaders Hertha Berlin with two quick goals after the break.

Cacau finished in the 46th minute after a long kick downfield by keeper Jens Lehmann was headed on by Mario Gomez. Sami Khedira made it two five minutes later when he headed in Thomas Hitzlsperger's free-kick.

Sosa, making a rare appearance in midfield, scored his first goal for Bayern who made hard work of their victory over Karlsruhe.

The Argentinian took a pass from Franck Ribery - back in the side after injury - to slot the ball past Markus Miller in goal in the 34th minute.

Brazilian striker Grafite bagged his 18th goal in 16 league games as visiting Wolfsburg downed Arminia Bielefeld 3-0, with Christian Gentner and Ashkan Dejagah also on target.

Grafite's goal in the 59th minute drew him level with Hoffenheim's injured Vedad Ibisivic as the league's top scorer.

The Brazilian had set up Gentner's opener for Wolfsburg in the 19th minute, while Dejagah netted with a deflected shot three minutes from time.

Fifth-placed Hoffenheim lost further ground when they were held 2-2 by visiting Hanover, leaving Ralf Rangnick's side without a win in seven matches.

Selim Teber gave Hoffenheim the lead from the penalty spot in the 20th minute but Hanno Balitsch responded two minutes later and Mario Eggimann headed Hanover in front in the 74th-minute before substitute Wellington levelled with six minutes remaining.

An Alex Frei penalty midway through the second half was enough to secure Borussia Dortmund a 1-0 win over visiting Werder Bremen, while Bayer Leverkusen were held 1-1 by Eintracht Frankfurt.

Energie Cottbus remain deep in relegation danger after slipping to a 2-0 home defeat by Cologne. Slovenian striker Milivoje Novakovic mopped up from close range after an error from keeper Gerhard Tremmel in the 51st minute and then converted a penalty five minutes later.

Fourth-placed SV Hamburg could draw level on points with Bayern and Munich with a win at Schalke 04 on Sunday.

On Friday, visiting Bochum edged Borussia Moenchengladbach 1-0 in a relegation tussle. (dpa)

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