2. Bundesliga
A Robert Glatzel strike and a late Bakery Jatta goal proved sufficient for Hamburg to see off Fortuna Düsseldorf and add one more win to what is turning out to be an impressive campaign to date for the Red Shorts.
Hamburg 2-0 Fortuna Düsseldorf
Goals: 1-0 Glatzel 21' (assist: Jatta), 2-0 Jatta 90' (assist: Kittel)
Tim Walter's team have been in determined mood of late, Der Dino boasting a three-game winning run ahead of Fortuna's visit to the Volksparkstadion. The prize here for the hosts was a place atop the overnight standings and it was a reward Hamburg were eager to grasp from the get-go. Within the opening eight minutes of the encounter, HSV hit the crossbar twice, Jean-Luc Dompe and then Glatzel drawing the early groans from the home fans. Glatzel was the team's top scorer with 22 Bundesliga 2 goals to his name as his side chased promotion all the way to an ultimately unsuccessful play-off in 2021/22. The 28-year-old was celebrating his sixth goal of this campaign in the first half, sweeping home from close range after Jatta profited from Mario Vuskovic's defence-disrupting long ball to tee up the Dino's top scorer. As the half progressed, Dompe showed dazzling feet down the left before picking out Jatta at the far post. The midfielder's header looked goal bound until Florian Kastenmeier made a flying save to keep Fortuna in touch at the break.
Düsseldorf were in fifth spot going into this Matchday 9 meeting, yet they had failed to win on the road in three previous encounters and they had never beaten HSV in Bundesliga 2. Daniel Thioune's men were thus in need of an opening and they thought they found one when Dawid Kownacki rifled past Daniel Heuer Fernandes and into the corner. The sight of a raised offside flag cut short away celebrations, however. Glatzel sought to add further Fortuna heartache when he slalomed through before being denied by a crucial Tim Oberdorf tackle. With the hosts looking to seal a third home win of the campaign, Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer missed with a header. Fellow substitute Sonny Kittel then went agonisingly close to ending the contest - the midfielder's low drive bobbling against the inside of the upright. Hamburg continued to huff and puff thereafter, and they eventually blew Fortuna down, with Kittel lifting a pass onto the head of Jatta - who couldn't miss.
Teams
Hamburg: Heuer Fernandes – Heyer, Vuskovic, Schonlau (c), Leibold (Muheim 65') – Reis, Meffert, Benes (Kittel 78') – Jatta (Mikelbrencis 90'+3), Glatzel (Amaechi 90'+4), Dompe (Königsdörffer 66')
Unused subs: Raab, David, Bilbija, Suhonen
Out: Heil (foot), Megeed (metatarsal), Zumberi (hand)
Coach: Tim Walter
Fortuna: Kastenmeier - Zimmermann (Gavory 8'), Oberdorf, Klarer, Karbownik - Hendrix (Baah 77'), Sobottka (c) - Klaus (Iyoha 46'), Tanaka (Hennings 87'), Peterson (Appelkamp 46') - Kownacki
Unused subs: Wolf, Vukancic, Geerkens, Fernandes Neto
Out: Ampomah (tendon), Böckle (musculare), de Wijs (hamstring), Ginczek (tendon), Hoffmann (muscular), Uchino (ankle)
Coach: Daniel Thioune
Matchday 9 round-up
Sandhausen 2-3 Hannover
Goals: 0-1 Teuchert 14' (assist: Muroya), 1-1 Kinsombi (56'), 1-2 Nielsen 65' (assist: Besuschkow), 1-3 Muroya 71' (assist: Köhn), 2-3 Ajdini 73' (assist: Kinsombi)
Hannover continued their strong start to the season by edging a five-goal thriller away at Sandhausen. Cedric Teuchert put the visitors in front on 14 minutes before the sides exchanged four more goals in the space of 17 second-half minutes. David Kinsombi levelled first before Havard Nielsen and Sei Muroya gave Hannover the advantage again. Sandhausen may have had the better of the chances but Bashkim Ajdini's finish with a quarter of an hour remaining was just a consolation as they remain precariously placed above the drop zone going into the international break.
Eintracht Braunschweig 2-1 Karlsruhe
Goals: 1-0 Ujah 44' (assist: Pherai), 1-1 Wanitzek 54' (assist: Gondorf), 2-1 Ujah 72' (assist: Pherai)
Promoted Braunschweig made it back-to-back home wins - their only two victories of the season - thanks to an Anthony Ujah double against Karlsruhe. The experienced Nigerian put the hosts ahead on the stroke of half-time, but Marvin Wanitzek levelled for the visitors just 10 minutes into the second half after Eintracht failed to clear their lines. Ujah then restored the advantage and earned all three points when he reacted quickest to a cross.
Arminia Bielefeld 4-2 Holstein Kiel
Goals: 1-0 Hack 1', 2-0 Serra 36' (assist: Hack), 3-0 Okugawa 48' (assist: Lasme), 3-1 Mühling 59' (assist: Wriedt), 3-2 Bartels 68' (assist: Erras), 4-2 Lasme 85' (assist: Hack)
A blistering start to this encounter saw Bielefeld hit the front within 20 seconds, with Robin Hack's strike permitted to stand following a VAR check. The game then produced plenty of end-to-end entertainment before the hosts pulled away with further goals from Janni Serra and Masaya Okugawa. Kiel rallied and pulled back to within a single goal after Alexander Mühling and Fin Bartels added their names to the scoresheet. A killer counter attack settled proceedings in Bielefeld's favour, however, with Hack setting up Bryan Lasme to once again put daylight between the sides. Relegated from the top flight last season, Bielefeld picked up only their second win of this campaign.
Watch: Highlights of Bielefeld 4-2 Kiel
Darmstadt 2-0 Nuremberg
Goals: 1-0 Kempe 8' (assist: Manu), 2-0 Tietz 27' (assist: Kempe)
Darmstadt enjoyed an important win that kept them in the top three - at least overnight - while inflicting a fifth loss of the season on lowly Nuremberg. Things couldn't have gone any better for the Lilies in the opening stages, with Tobias Kempe profiting from Braydon Manu's assist to make it 1-0 after only eight minutes. Phillip Tietz then converted Tobias Kempe's corner to double the hosts' lead and get his fifth goal of the season prior to the half-hour mark. Darmstadt dug in and played on the counter attack thereafter, and their resolve was rarely tested. The visitors failed to create any clear-cut chances as Torsten Lieberknecht's men cruised to three more points.
Hansa Rostock 3-1 Magdeburg
Goals: 1-0 Pröger 30' (assist: Ingelsson), 2-0 Pröger 41' (assist: Verhoek), 3-0 Fröde 64' (assist: Ingelsson), 3-1 Atik 90'+4 (assist: Ceka)
Hansa Rostock ended a run of three losses with a welcome win that leaves Magdeburg in the division's bottom three. Scorer of a double on the day, Kai Pröger spurned several chances to open the scoring before he finally hit the bullseye with a strike to the corner after 30 minutes. Before the break, Pröger was again on target as Hansa made their dominance tell with a commanding half-time lead. Magdeburg's chances of a comeback were eliminated when VAR ruled that Lukas Fröde's finish from Svante Ingelsson's cross was OK to stand. Baris Atik's injury-time goal for the visitors will have done little to lift the spirits of Christian Titz's promoted team.
Greuther Fürth 2-1 Paderborn
Goals: 1-0 Michalski 42' (assist: Asta), 1-1 Srbeny 49' (assist: Pieringer), 2-1 Hrgota 73' (assist: Christiansen)
It may have taken them a while but Fürth are finally up and running with a first win of the Bundesliga 2 season, after the hosts stunned promotion-chasing Paderborn at the Sportpark Ronhof. The visitors dominated the opening 45 minutes only to fall behind when Damian Michalski headed home a Simon Asta corner shortly before the break. Paderborn were right back in it after the restart, Florent Muslija beginning a move that saw Marvin Pieringer then feed Dennis Srbeny who finished expertly. It was to be Fürth's day, though, with both captains involved the game-winning goal. Branimir Hrgota's shot deflected off Ron Schallenberg to send the home fans home happy to have witnessed their side collect all three points for the first time in 2022/23.
Heidenheim 2-2 Kaiserslautern
Goals: 1-0 Beste 17' (assist: Föhrenbach), 1-1 Boyd 20' (assist: Kraus), 2-1 Busch 44', 2-2 Boyd 60' (assist: Ritter)
Red card: Luthe 41'
Both sides settled for a point that helped to maintain their respective solid starts to the campaign. Having had goalkeeper Andreas Luthe sent off in the first half, however, the home side emerged the more relieved side. Heidenheim hit the front when Jan-Niklas Beste drilled home at the near post on 17 minutes but the visitors were back in it soon afterwards. Former USMNT international Terrence Boyd scored his fifth goal of the season following a failed clearance. Luthe was ordered off for a foul on Beste and from the resulting free kick Marnon Busch curled in for 2-1. Promoted Kaiserslautern weren't to be denied, however, with Boyd finishing off a fine counter attack to score his second of the game.
Jahn Regensburg 2-0 FC St Pauli
Goals: 1-0 Albers (pen. 8'), 2-0 Albers 41' (assist: Viet)
The home side leapfrogged Pauli in the standings and moved up to 11th place thanks to an Andreas Albers double at the Jahnstadion. Regensburg failed to win or score in any of their six previous Bundesliga 2 games but were in front early on here after Betim Fazliji downed Christian Viet in the penalty area and Albers converted from the spot. Pauli failed to make much of their possession thereafter and were punished when Albers doubled his side's lead at the second attempt four minutes before half-time. The game failing to produce any significant chances after the restart, Regensburg comfortably held on to inflict a third defeat of the season on 12th-placed Pauli.