Hoffenheim slump to defeat against 1. FCN

Playing with the same eleven that began their last game against Bayer 04 Leverkusen, TSG started the match strongly. Ryan Babel's deflected shot inside only the second minute had the Nürnberg defence struggling, before an offside flag came to their rescue. Sejad Salihovic was also seeing plenty of the ball, with Jannik Vestergaard looking particularly menacing from the Bosnian's set-piece deliveries.

Pekhart steals in, Beck hits back

Against the run of play, however, the away team took a shock lead. Daniel Didavi's strike from distance was parried by Tom Starke but only into the path of Tomas Pekhart, who fired in the rebound (8'). But the hosts hit back and should have been level two minutes later. Babel pounced on a defensive error and laid the ball across the box, but Knowledge Musona's shot drifted wide of the post (11'). That miss mattered little though, as another Babel cross found its way to captain Andreas Beck, and the defender calmly side-footed home for his first league goal in five years (21').

Hoffenheim's tails were now up and they went in search of a second goal. Sven Schipplock embarked on a powerful solo run and laid the ball off to Musona, but Raphael Schäfer pulled off a smart save in the Nürnberg goal (28'). Then, just before half time came three dramatic minutes. TSG were unlucky not to go in at the break leading, as Schipplock was denied by a fantastic save from Schäfer after Fabian Johnson's slaloming run. And it turned out to be the away side that struck the last blow of a gripping first half, as Didavi finished off Markus Feulner's cross (45')

Hoffenheim hit by sucker punch

Conceding so close to half time was a body blow for Hoffenheim, and it was their opponents that got off to the better start in the second half, as Starke had to be at his instinctive best to keep out Albert Bunjaku's drive (50'). The home side's first opportunity after the break came just shy of the hour-mark, when Salihovic's header from Babel's excellent cross was held by Schäfer (58').

Hoffenheim continued to huff and puff, but it was Nürnberg that found the next goal, and effectively killed the game off. Javier Pinola ran unchallenged along the box and when his attempt was saved by Starke, Pekhart was in the right place to head in another rebound and make it 1-3 to the away side (71'). Dutchman Edson Braafheid, on as a substitute, then set up a tense finale with a superb strike three minutes from time, latching onto a cross-field pass and firing first-time past Schäfer from 16 yards. It proved too little too late, however, as Nürnberg managed to hold out for the three points.

It was a disappointing result in TSG's last home match of the season, but they have the chance to redeem themselves when they finish their campaign away at Hertha BSC Berlin on matchday 34.

Match facts and statistics »