Bochum earn much-needed win over Frankfurt

Bochum 2-0 Frankfurt
Goals: 1-0 Blum 3' (assist: Asano), 2-0 Polter 90'+2 (assist: Stafylidis)

There was no time for the late arrivals at the Vonovia Ruhrstadion to take their seats before Blum had them on their feet celebrating. Takuma Asano sent him through with a delightful pass that he took in his stride before showing the composure to slot the ball low past Kevin Trapp. The home side's euphoria was dampenend soon after when a VAR review of a Polter handball saw the referee point to the spot. Joy was restored to the Bochum fans when Manuel Riemann dived the right way and kept Goncalo Paciencia's spot-kick out. Paciencia did not last much longer with injury forcing him off, and Oliver Glasner had to make another injury-enforced change before the break with Kristijan Jakic replaced by Sebastian Rode.

Things could not really get any worse for Frankfurt, although they nearly did early in the second half when Asano burst through with only Trapp to beat, but his shot was straight at the goalkeeper. Frankfurt were struggling to get their usually lethal wing play to create any danger, but when Filip Kostic did find some space, he used it well to cross for Sam Lammers, who headed just over. Jens Petter Hauge and Ajdin Hrustic were sent on for the final 15 minutes as Glasner looked to salvage a point and the gamble nearly paid off when Daichi Kamada came the closest yet to levelling, hitting the post with a low drive. But it was not to be for the guests as Bochum doubled their lead late on, with Polter slotting into an open goal to seal their third win of the season, taking them above their opponents into 14th.

• Blum scored with his first shot of the season.
• His goal was Bochum's earliest of the campaign, and the earliest Frankfurt have conceded, while it was his first since scoring for Frankfurt on 11 March 2018 against Dortmund.
• Riemann's penalty save brought an end to Frankfurt's streak of converting consecutive spot-kicks: they'd previously scored a club-record 18 in a row dating back to April 2017.
• Riemann is now the first custodian to save two penalties this season, having also stopped one from Wolfsburg's Wout Weghorst on Matchday 1. He kept out 16 of the 47 he faced in Bundesliga 2.
• Bochum have beaten Frankfurt more than any other side in the Bundesliga (24).
• Frankfurt had not lost successive league games since May 2020.

Watch: Rode: "You have to win your duels"

Bochum: Riemann - Gamboa, Masovic, Lampropoulos, Soares - Löwen (Stafylidis 81'), Losilla (c), Rexhbecaj - Asano (Antwi-Adjei 81'), Polter, Blum (Holtmann 67')
Unused subs: Esser, Bella Kotchap, Osterhage, Chibsah, Novothny, Pantovic
Out: Bockhorn (thigh), Leitsch (thigh), Tesche (hip), Zoller (knee)
Coach: Thomas Reis  

Frankfurt: Trapp - Toure (Hrustic 75'), Hinteregger (c), Tuta - Sow (Hauge 75'), Hasebe, Jakic (Rode 45'), Kostic - Kamada - Borre, Paciencia (Lammers 28')
Unused subs: Ramaj, N'Dicka, Durm, Ilsanker, Lindstrom
Out: Barkok (knee), Lenz (thigh)
Coach: Oliver Glasner

Watch: Polter: "A step in the right direction"