By Xinhua
Berlin : Bayern Munich won the top of the table clash at second-placed Bayer Leverkusen 1-0, while defending champion VfB Stuttgart lost to newly-elevated Hansa Rostock 1-2 in German Bundesliga football action.
With 20 points in hands, Bayern are now four points clear of Schalke 04, who beat Hertha BSC Berlin 1-0 at home earlier Friday, sealing the second place. This is the first defeat for Bayer after six unbeaten competitive matches.
Miroslav Klose set up Italian international Luca Toni for the decisive goal 40 minutes into Saturday’s game, helping Bayern stay unbeaten in the season.
It was the sixth goal of the season for Toni, making the powerful forward take the second berth at the scorers’ list, two goals after top scorer Klose.
“It was a hard-fought victory,” Bayern coach Ottmar Hitzfeld said after the match.
“There were some critical moments. The ball was clearly over the line on the disallowed goal. After a call like that everyone is a bit nervous,” he added.
A big surprise for German soccer fans, superior Stuttgart suffered a shameful defeat in Rostock 1-2.
The defeat is also a serious setback for Stuttgart before their match in the UEFA Champions League against Barcelona Tuesday.
Tobias Rathgeb, with his first goal of the season, put Hansa in front, while defender Orestes extended their lead.
German international Mario Gomez could only reduced the deficit in the 73rd minute for Stuttgart.
This is the third win for the host team, which also means that they move out of the relegation zone.
Karlsruhe defeated powerful Borussia Dortmund 3-1, winning the fourth out of their last five games to climb to third place.
The biggest win of the season was achieved by Werder Bremen, who thrashed Arminia Bielefeld 8-1.
Bosnian international Zvjezdan Misimovic rescued Nurnberg a point against his former club VfL Bochum. He scored the equaliser in the 81th minute. The two teams shared six goals in this dramatic match.
Without a single win in the past six matches, Nuremberg remain in the drop zone while Bochum, who have now not won in five matches, remain in the lower regions of the table.
In another match, Hamburger SV saw an unwilling tie of 2-2 with VfL Wolfsburg.