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Goalless draw against Leverkusen
Personnel & tactics:
Coach Sebastian Hoeness made three changes to the team that lost 2-1 away to FC Augsburg. Kevin Akpoguma made his comeback and played alongside Stefan Posch and Chris Richards in a back three in front of goalkeeper Oliver Baumann. Ryan Sessegnon replaced Marco John on the left flank, while Pavel Kadeřábek kept his place on the right. Florian Grillitsch pushed forward into midfield and started alongside Sebastian Rudy and Christoph Baumgartner. Ihlas Bebou kept his place in attack, where he played alongside Robert Skov, who scored the goal in Augsburg.
Injury forced TSG into making their first change in the 38th minute, with Andrej Kramarić replacing Rudy. Hoeness then brought on Georginio Rutter for Skov (78) and Håvard Nordtveit for Akpoguma in the closing stages.
Moment of the match:
The final whistle. At 22:22 CET, referee Matthias Jöllenbeck blew his whistle. It not only brought a close to the game between TSG Hoffenheim and Bayer 04 Leverkusen, but also marked the end of Monday matches. These fixtures, which were incorporated into the calendar in 2017/18, will be abolished once more ahead of the new season.
Number of the game: 250
Sebastian Rudy made his 250th appearance in the Bundesliga for TSG Hoffenheim. That makes the midfielder TSG's record appearance-maker in the German top flight. Unfortunately, the landmark occasion ended prematurely in the 38th minute due to an muscular injury.
Line-ups:
TSG Hoffenheim: Baumann – Akpoguma (Nordtveit, 88), Posch, Richards – Kadeřábek, Grillitsch, Sessegnon – Rudy (Kramarić, 38), Baumgartner – Bebou, Skov (Rutter, 78)
Bayer 04 Leverkusen: Hradecky – Jedvaj, S. Bender, Tapsoba, Wendell – Aranguiz, Palacios – Wirtz (Amiri, 58), Demirbay (Frimpong, 71), Diaby (Bailey, 86) – Alario (Schick, 58)
Match highlights
Arranguiz breaks through in the Hoffenheim box and goes for goal. Baumann throws his arms into the air and stops his side from falling behind.
Major chance for TSG to take the lead. Akpoguma plays a nice pass down the right towards Kadeřábek, who has the vision to pick out Baumgartner. The Austrian runs in at the back post and attempts a diving header but does not connect with the ball. That should've been the opener.
Hoffenheim lose possession in their own half. Leverkusen switch the play at speed and find Amiri in the penalty area. It looks as though the former TSG man is certain to find the net, but he shoots straight at Baumann.
Match facts and statistics »
