RB Leipzig put their early season stumbles behind them on Sunday, walloping 10-man Nuremberg 6-0 to go second in the Bundesliga ahead of the international break.
It could have been even worse for the visitors, with Nuremberg keeper Fabian Bredlow saving a 63rd-minute penalty from Timo Werner after Tim Leibold was red carded for a challenge in the box.
Leipzig wasted no time in getting on the scoreboard, with Kevin Kampl scoring in the third minute.
The epitome of pure joy ?#DieRotenBullen #RBLFCN #Sabitzer pic.twitter.com/9jdrtxxrAW
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) October 7, 2018
Danish forward Yussuf Poulsen doubled the advantage just four minutes later, before Marcel Sabitzer added another in the 21st minute.
Werner took advantage of a lucky rebound in the 31st minute, burying the ball in the bottom right corner to bring up his 50th Bundesliga goal and a scoreline of 4-0.
Sabitzer (55th minute) and Werner (59th minute) added one more each in the second half, before Leipzig took their foot off the accelerator in the final 30 minutes.
?️ Brace-scorer Marcel #Sabitzer: "We turned our chances into goals and I'm so pleased to have finally scored again. What matters as well is the win and how we played. Today we were superb, and we can now be happy as we go into the international break." #RBLFCN pic.twitter.com/Zr4YDieKOR
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) October 7, 2018
Leipzig are three points behind Borussia Dortmund who defeated Augsburg 4-3 on Saturday while champions Bayern Munich ended the weekend in sixth place after a 3-0 home loss to Moenchengladbach.
It continues a rollercoaster run of results for the promoted Nuremberg.
In the past three match days, comprehensive victories over Hanover (2-0) and Dusseldorf (3-0) bookended a 7-0 defeat away at Dortmund.
Ante Rebic scored for the third Bundesliga game in a row but was also sent off as Eintracht Frankfurt capped a successful week with a 2-1 win at Hoffenheim.
So uhhh, no biggie, but we're now up to second... ⬆️
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) October 7, 2018
...and ahead of @FCBayernEN as well ?#RBLFCN https://t.co/kGLTm0VhBK
The visitors were made to work for their victory at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena after being reduced to 10 men in the 62nd minute when Croatia forward Rebic received his second yellow card of the game.
Paris Saint-Germain loanee Kevin Trapp preserved Frankfurt's victory in the 93rd minute with a stunning one-handed reflex save, denying Hoffenheim after Ishak Belfodil's last-gasp header looked set to snatch them a point.
Hoffenheim dominated an exhausted Frankfurt in the dying stages, with on-loan Arsenal teenager Reiss Nelson scoring his second goal in three appearances to trim the deficit in the 82nd minute.
Tricky time for Hoffenheim as they suffer a third straight defeat for the first time since August 2015. #UCL pic.twitter.com/ilRr9NDHxL
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 7, 2018
Frankfurt's opening goal came against the run of play in a first half dominated by the home side. Hoffenheim had several clear-cut chances but could only hit the woodwork.
From a wayward throw in, Luka Jovic’s long pass up the left hand side drew Hoffenheim keeper Oliver Baumann out of his box. Rebic noticed Baumann advancing and chipped it over the retreating keeper.
Eintracht doubled their lead just 30 seconds after half-time, with Jovic taking advantage after Baumann failed to handle a low cross from Filip Kostic to hammer it home.
In Sunday's opening game, Freiburg drew 0-0 at home to Bayer Leverkusen.
RESULTS:
Freiburg 0 Bayer Leverkusen 0
Hoffenheim 1 (Nelson 82) Eintracht Frankfurt 2 (Rebic 40, Jovic 46)
RB Leipzig 6 (Kampl 3, Poulsen 7, Sabitzer 21, 55, Werner 32, 59) Nuremberg 0
