By Rich

Alassane Plea’s goal on a penalty kick in the 34th minute was enough for Borussia Mönchengladbach to win at home on Friday against visitors Hertha Berlin. Plea has now scored 4 goals in 8 meetings with Hertha, and has converted his last 4 Bundesliga penalty kicks. Friday’s match was the first time this season when Gladbach took a lead, and Hertha have now lost 8 of their last 10 Bundesliga matches with Gladbach. Although the win on Friday gives Gladbach a slender 1-point lead in the table, several clubs are likely to overtake or tie them by the end of the weekend. On Saturday, Dortmund will host Bremen in what may be one of the most-watched contests on this matchday. Both clubs are among the league’s giants and founder members, and both teams are off to unbeaten starts this season. The teams have met 106 times since the league’s founding, and together hold 9 Bundesliga titles. Although Dortmund’s 56 Bundesliga seasons are just behind Bremen’s 58 campaigns, Dortmund have collected 46 wins against Bremen, while Bremen have collected 41 wins against Dortmund. Those 46 wins include Dortmund’s victory when the teams last met in April 2021. Later on Saturday, Leipzig will look for its first win of the season when they travel to Berlin to take on Union. It was Leipzig who embarrassed Union 4:0 on the latter’s introduction to the top flight back in August 2019, but the hosts have since managed to qualify for Europe in each of the past 2 seasons. Union are currently enjoying their best-ever start to a Bundesliga season, are unbeaten in a club-record 9 top-flight matches, and have won their last 3 league meetings with Leipzig, each time by a score of 2:1. Leipzig have now welcomed back striker Timo Werner, who has 96 goals in 160 games for the club, and who the club needs following draws in the first 2 matchdays and a DFB Pokal loss to Bayern. One other match to watch on Saturday will be the derby between hosts Stuttgart and nearby Freiburg: while Freiburg are unbeaten in their last 6 Bundesliga meetings with Stuttgart, the hosts may benefit from the reunion of Sasa Kalajdzic and Borna Sosa. Looking ahead to Sunday, Köln will look to preserve their spot in the league’s top third when they travel to Frankfurt. The hosts are still looking for their first win of the season, although new signing and 2014 World Cup hero Mario Götze featured in a 4:0 win over Magdeburg in the DFB Pokal. Köln were eliminated from the Pokal in penalties against Regensburg, but are 1 of 6 unbeaten Bundesliga teams heading into Matchday 3.

By Rich

Nick Woltemade is a 20-year-old forward and attacking midfielder for SV Werder Bremen. Woltemade was born on February 14, 2002 in Bremen, Germany, and spent his youth career playing for TS Woltmershausen from 2009 to 2010, and SV Werder Bremen from 2010 to 2020. In the 2018-19 season, he scored 18 goals and made 8 assists in 24 matches for Bremen’s U17 team in the U17 Bundesliga. He was called up to the senior squad on January 11, 2020 for a Bundesliga match against Bayer 04 Leverkusen, and made his professional debut on February 1, 2020 in a 2:1 away defeat against FC Augsburg. Woltemade has also made 15 appearances for Germany’s U16 and U17 squads.

By Rich

Substitutes Youssoufa Moukoko and Jamie Bynoe-Gittens came off the bench on Friday to rally visitors Borussia Dortmund to a come-from-behind 3:1 victory over hosts Sport-Club Freiburg. Freiburg’s Michael Gregoritsch headed the ball past Gregor Kobel off an assist from Matthias Ginter in the 35th minute to take the lead. Bynoe-Gittens finally scored the equalizer in the 77th minute off an assist from Moukoko, and then it was Moukoko himself who allowed Dortmund to take the lead in the 84th minute, off an assist from Julian Brandt. The match’s final goal came in the 88th minute, when Marius Wolf drilled a shot inside the far post. Ginter’s early assist was his 1st in the Bundesliga since December 2020, when he did so for former club Borussia Mönchengladbach against Hertha Berlin. Bynoe-Gittens’ goal was his 1st in the Bundesliga, having come in his 5th top-flight outing. Moukoko’s goal was his 6th in the top flight, making him the youngest player to ever reach that mark. Saturday’s biggest contest is that between hosts FC Schalke 04 and nearby visitors Borussia Mönchengladbach. Schalke’s return to the Bundesliga started off badly last weekend when they lost to nearby 1. FC Köln, driven in part by a red card for Dominick Drexler in the 35th minute. Defender Maya Yoshida is set to make his home debut for Schalke after being signed from Sampdoria, and Marius Bülter, who scored last weekend’s goal, is likely to replace the suspended Drexler. Gladbach are coming off a 3:1 home victory last weekend against Hoffenheim, and 2 of those goals came from French attacker Alassane Plea, who signed a new contract earlier this month. Should Gladbach win the match on Saturday, it would be the first time they won their first 2 matches of a Bundesliga season since 1995/6. Looking ahead to Sunday, 2 clubs who both won their opening matches last weekend will both go for 2 wins when Union Berlin travel to Mainz. Mainz’ Angelo Fulgini, a summer signing from French side Angers, made his debut last weekend and played for 62 minutes, while Union’s Jordan Siebatcheu, signed to replace Taiwo Awoniyi, has already scored goals in a DFB Pokal win over Chemnitz and in last weekend’s opening derby win over Hertha Berlin. Union are now unbeaten in a club record 8 Bundesliga matches, and have won 4 of 6 Bundesliga matches against Mainz. The weekend’s last match comes on Sunday, when Wolfsburg travel to Bayern. Bayern have never lost a home match to Wolfsburg, who are winless in 14 Bundesliga matches with Bayern. Wolfsburg’s last Bundesliga victory over Bayern occurred on January 30, 2015.