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Dabbur fires TSG to victory in Augsburg
Personnel & tactics:
TSG Hoffenheim made three changes to the starting XI that was beaten 2-0 by RB Leipzig last time out. Having served his suspension, captain Benjamin Hübner returned to the heart of defence and played alongside Stefan Posch and Florian Grillitsch in a back three in front of goalkeeper Oliver Baumann. Robert Skov replaced Steven Zuber on the left, while Pavel Kadeřábek kept his place on the right flank.
Diadie Samassékou and Sebastian Rudy continued their defensive midfield partnership, with Jacob Bruun Larsen and Christoph Baumgartner in more attacking roles and Munas Dabbur selected as the lone frontman.
Andrej Kramarić was introduced at the interval, the forward replacing Christoph Baumgartner. Matthias Kaltenbach opted for another attacking switch in the 54th minute as Bruun Larsen made way for Ihlas Bebou. Two-goal scorer Dabbur was brought off in the 73rd minute and replaced by Maximilian Beier. Once TSG had gone 3-1 ahead, Steven Zuber and Ermin Bičakčić came on for Skov and Rudy (90).
Moment of the match:
The third goal: Kramarić did brilliantly to win a one-on-one battle on the right and squared the ball into the danger zone. Ihlas Bebou initially lost his footing but managed to poke the ball into the corner as he fell to seal the win.
Number of the game: 7
The 3-1 victory in Augsburg was the seventh time Hoffenheim have won away from home this season. TSG have never won that many matches on the road and the tally of 27 away points is a club record in the Bundesliga too.
Line-ups:
FC Augsburg: Luthe – Lichtsteiner (Richter, 65), Gouweleeuw, Suchy, Jedvaj (Framberger, 83) – Baier (Oxford, 83), Gruezo – Vargas, Löwen, Max (Hahn, 83) – Finnbogason (Niederlechner, 65)
TSG Hoffenheim: Baumann – Posch, Grillitsch, Hübner – Kadeřábek, Rudy (Bičakčić, 90), Samassékou, Skov (Zuber, 90) – Bruun Larsen (Bebou, 54), Baumgartner (Kramarić, 46) – Dabbur (Beier, 73)
Goals: 0-1 Dabbur (59), 0-2 Dabbur (62), 1-2 Vargas (69), 1-3 Bebou (89)
Match highlights
First dangerous opportunity: Kaderabek cuts the ball back from the byline towards Dabbur but his shot from inside the penalty area sails over the crossbar.
Biggest chance of the match: Augsburg win the ball in their own penalty area and switch the play at lightning speed. Max runs into the box from the right relatively unchallenged but his attempt strikes the side-netting.
TSG have a huge opportunity out of the blue when Skov whips in a free-kick from the left towards Hübner, who is completely unmarked. However, the TSG captain is taken by surprise and doesn't make proper contact.
Rudy plays a great cross into the middle from the right. Baumgartner wins the challenge and volleys at goal, but Luthe dives at full stretch and manages to parry it onto the bar. TSG were unlucky there.
Hübner meets a Skov corner with a header that thunders against the crossbar. Luthe didn't stand a chance.
TSG deservedly take the lead. Kaderabek is afforded far too much space on the right wing and crosses perfectly towards Dabbur, who volleys home to make it 1-0.
Another one! Kaderabek crosses into the centre from the right and, although Bebou strikes the bar, Dabbur is there to hammer home the follow-up.
Max takes a corner from the left. Vargas wins the aerial battle and heads the ball into the far corner.
Brilliant counter from TSG: Bebou squares the ball to Beier, who is clean through on Luthe but is denied by the crossbar.
Kramaric beats his man brilliantly on the right and plays it into the middle. It initially looks as though the danger has been averted, but Bebou steers the ball into the far corner as he falls to make it 3-1.
Match facts and statistics »
