Draw at Bayern denies Schalke second spot in Bundesliga

7 November 2009 17:50

Schalke´s defender Joel Matip (second right) is congratulated by teammates. Schalke has missed the chance to claim second in the Bundesliga behind leaders Leverkusen after they were held to a 1-1 draw at struggling Bayern Munich.

BERLIN (AFP) - Schalke 04 missed the chance to claim second in the Bundesliga behind leaders Leverkusen on Saturday after they were held to a 1-1 draw at struggling Bayern Munich.

Bayern defender Daniel van Buyten put the hosts ahead at Munich's Allianz Arena before Schalke's Joel Matip's header just before half-time gave his side a point which keeps the Royal Blues fourth while Bayern drop to eighth.

"I am very pleased both with the result and performance," said Schalke coach Felix Magath.

"But I am a bit sad that we couldn't take control of the game after a good opening phase.

"We were reacting to them rather than creating.

"We were under pressure in the second-half, but we defended well and didn't give away many chances, so we deserved the 1-1 draw."

Having seen their Champions League aspirations effectively ended after their 2-0 defeat at home to Bordeaux last Tuesday, Bayern have now dropped further down the German league table leaving coach Louis van Gaal visibly unimpressed.

"Our goal was to beat Schalke, unfortunately that didn't happen," said van Gaal.

"We didn't play well enough in the first ten minutes, even though we dominated.

"We had many chances which missed their target by only two, three or five centimetres.

"We have to change that.

"It is frustrating that we didn't score again in the second-half."

The hosts took the lead when Munich defender Holger Badstuber swung in a free-kick, the ball spun off the back of Schalke's ex-Germany striker Kevin Kuranyi into the path of Bayern's van Buyten, who tapped home on 31 minutes.

But Schalke, now unbeaten in their last seven games, fought back when defender Matip jumped the highest of a posse of players when a long-ball flew in to header past Bayern goalkeeper Hans-Joerg Butt on 43 minutes.

With second-placed Werder Bremen and Hamburg, third, playing Sunday, both Schalke and Hoffenheim missed their chance to claim second place after Leverkusen had routed Frankfurt 4-0 on Friday.

Hosts Hoffenheim took a 1-0 lead only to see the three-points snatched off them after conceding two goals in five second-half minutes to hand Wolfsburg a 2-1 win to go fifth in the table.

Hoffenheim went ahead against the defending Bundesliga champions when hot-shot striker Vedad Ibisevic got on the end of a pin-point long-ball from Brazil striker Maicosuel to head home on 23 minutes.

But Wolfsburg hit back with two goals in five minutes when chief playmaker Zvjezdan Misimovic bagged his sixth goal in 12 games on 52 minutes.

And Brazil striker Grafite put his side ahead when he enjoyed a simple goal on 57 minutes when his shot flew in off the ankle of a Hoffenheim defender which leaves the home side seventh in the table.

Stuttgart's under-pressure coach Markus Babbel picked up his second point in as many Bundesliga matches after his side's goalless draw with Borussia Moenchengladbach.

But the result leaves his side 14th in the league and hovering just above the relegation zone.

In the day's other results, Mainz are up to sixth in the league after their 1-0 win at home to Nuremberg while Freiburg enjoyed a 2-1 win at Bochum.

On Friday, league leaders Leverkusen opened a four-point gap at the top of the Bundesliga after scoring three goals in the game's first 11 minutes in their 4-0 win over Frankfurt.

Having been named in the Germany squad for the first time since February earlier on Friday, Leverkusen striker Stefan Kiessling netted in the second minute.

Stefan Reinartz headed home on six minutes and then 19-year-old Toni Kroos rifled home a shot into the top right-hand corner on 16 minutes as the team's younger stars enjoyed their time in the limelight.

Then substitute midfielder Lars Bender, 20, came off the bench in the 83rd minute and hit the fourth goal just three minutes later.