Germany winger Karim Bellarabi fired Bayer Leverkusen into the Bundesliga's top three on Saturday with a 1-0 win at Schalke.
Having bowed out of the Champions League on Tuesday suffering the heartbreak of a penalty shoot-out defeat to Atletico Madrid in the last 16, Leverkusen leap-frogged Borussia Monchengladbach to go third in Germany’s top flight.
Bayer’s Germany winger Bellarabi, who has been linked to Arsenal, grabbed the 35th-minute winner from the tightest of angles with a superb shot across goal.
“Now we are up where we want to still be at the end of the season,” said Bellarabi who has been named in Germany’s squad for Wednesday’s friendly with Australia and next Sunday’s Euro 2016 qualifier against Georgia.
Having won the last 16, first leg clash against Atletico 1-0 in Leverkusen, Bayer lost 1-0 in Madrid before suffering the disappointment of losing 3-2 on spot-kicks after ex-Germany striker Stefan Kiessling blasted over his crucial penalty.
“We played a very good game and deserved the win,” said Leverkusen coach Roger Schmidt after his side beat Schalke.
“The fact that the team was able to play with so much concentration after Tuesday’s match is fantastic.”
But Schalke coach Roberto di Matteo was bitterly disappointed as his side are now five points from a possible Champions League place in fifth.
“There were too many mistakes in our build up play,” said ex-Chelsea coach Di Matteo, who took charge in October and whose club bowed out of the Champions League in the last 16 despite beating holders Real Madrid away.
“We didn’t control the game and didn’t create enough chances, too often we didn’t make the right decision.”
After the international break, Leverkusen play strugglers Hamburg in a fortnight before their crucial DFB-Pokal (German Cup) quarter-final at home to holders Bayern Munich on April 4.
Borussia Dortmund, meanwhile, bounced back from their mid-week Champions League exit with a 3-2 victory over 10-man Hannover to earn their first win in four games.
Dortmund bounced back from their 3-0 defeat at home to Juventus on Wednesday, which sealed a 5-1 aggregate defeat in the last 16, and goalless against Hamburg and Cologne as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang netted twice.
“We started well, but completely gave away the equaliser,” said Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp, whose side are now five points from the European berths.
“We did really well after the second yellow card and anyone who looks at the table sees how important the win was.”
Dortmund took the lead in Hannover after Germany winger Marco Reus’s no-look pass allowed Aubameyang to bury his shot in the 19th minute.
The lead lasted just 12 minutes as ex-Dortmund midfielder Leonardo Bittencourt stole possession on the halfway line, sprinted to the edge of the area and fed Lars Stindl whose weak shot beat the Dortmund defence.
Dortmund captain Mats Hummels headed off the line early in the second half from Spanish striker Joselu just before the hosts were reduced to ten men.
Bittencourt was sent off on 55 minutes for a foul on Dortmund veteran Sebastian Kehl just six minutes after fouling Jakub Blaszczykowski.
Dortmund made the numerical advantage count almost immediately as Reus again provided the final pass for Japan midfielder Shinji Kagawa to score their second on 57 minutes for his first league goal since September.
Kagawa then set up Aubameyang for his second goal with a cross which saw the Gabon forward head home on 61 minutes.
Hannover set up a nervous last ten minutes when Stindl beat Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller to make it 3-2 with 82 minutes gone, but the win leaves Borussia tenth with Hannover 14th, but two points from relegation.
“We’re now in the relegation battle,” said Hannover coach Tayfun Korkat.
“I have a huge responsibility, but I still feel the confidence in me.”
Werder Bremen stay ninth after being held to a 1-1 draw at mid-table Cologne as a first-half goal by Germany Under 19 striker Davie Selke for the visitors was cancelled out by an 88th-minute penalty from Cologne midfielder Matthias Lehmann.
Freiburg climbed out of the bottom three with a 2-0 win at home to Augsburg thanks to second-half goals from Jonathan Schmid and Nils Petersen.
Paderborn stay second-from-bottom after their goalless draw at home to ten-man Hoffenheim, who had Bosnia defender Ermin Bicakcic sent off for a second yellow card.
Stuttgart remain rooted to the foot of the table despite their 3-1 comeback win at home to Eintracht Frankfurt.
After Frankfurt midfielder Haris Seferovic gave his side a second-half lead Stuttgart striker Daniel Ginczek cancelled out the advantage by scoring twice in as many minutes.
Romania midfielder Alexandru Maxim then added Stuttgart’s third to seal their first home win since September.
The result means just two points separate the bottom four teams of Stuttgart, Freiburg, Paderborn and Hamburg in Germany’s top flight.
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