Matchday 8 bulletins
Cologne - Once again, the Bundesliga threw up drama and incident in equal measure on Matchday 8, although there was no change at the top of the table, where FC Bayern München continue to set the pace.
Monday 20 October
Philipp Lahm scored his first league brace in 321 appearances the Bavarians thumped SV Werder Bremen, while 1. FC Köln heaped more misery on Borussia Dortmund and Roberto Di Matteo celebrated his first game as FC Schalke 04 head coach with victory over Hertha Berlin.
On Sunday, meanwhile, Hamburger SV and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim played out an entertaining draw at the Imtech Arena, and surprise package SC Paderborn 07's stunning season continued against Eintracht Frankfurt. bundesliga.com brings you the latest reaction to round eight of the 2014/15 campaign.
MATCHDAY 8 Results
SC Paderborn 07 3-1 Eintracht Frankfurt
Hamburger SV 1-1 TSG 1899 Hoffenheim
FC Bayern München 6-0 SV Werder Bremen
1. FSV Mainz 05 2-1 FC Augsburg
SC Freiburg 1-2 VfL Wolfsburg
Hannover 96 0-3 Borussia Mönchengladbach
VfB Stuttgart 3-3 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
1. FC Köln 2-1 Borussia Dortmund
FC Schalke 04 2-0 Hertha Berlin
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Bayern arrive in Rome
FC Bayern, meanwhile, have touched down in Rome where the Bundesliga pacesetters will be locking horns with AS Roma in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday:
Sunday 19 October
Van der Vaart returns
HSV have Rafael van der Vaart back in the team after the Dutchman missed the last five games:
The teams are in!
Boateng hails 'The Hunter'
Kevin-Prince Boateng was part of the last Hertha Berlin side to beat Schalke in the lead - in September 2006 - but he was delighted to be on the winning side against the club from the capital, and praised Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, scorer of the opening goal, for yet another match-deciding contribution.
Climax in Paderborn
SC Paderborn host Frankfurt in this weekend's final encounter. Can the newly promoted side grab a third win of the season?
Xabi off the mark
Xabi Alonso will have woken up with a smile on his face after scoring his first goal for Bayern yesterday...
Friday 19 October
Atsuto Uchida (l.) and Christian Fuchs made no secret of their delight following Schalke's 2-0 win against Hertha in Roberto Di Matteo's first game in charge:
Here are the teams for Roberto Di Matteo's first game in charge of FC Schalke 04:
Meanwhile, there's plenty more action around the Bundesliga...
SC Freiburg - VfL Wolfsburg
Hannover 96 - Borussia Mönchengladbach
1. FSV Mainz 05 - FC Augsburg
After 430 days out, Ilkay Gündogan makes his comeback in Borussia Dortmund colours against 1. FC Köln...
It's a formidable-looking FC Bayern München line-up which welcomes cellar-dwellers SV Werder Bremen to the Allianz Arena...
Fresh from his first two international caps, Karim Bellarabi takes his place in the Bayer 04 Leverkusen starting XI for their trip to VfB Stuttgart...
What a servant he has been for the German record champions...
Guardians of the undefeated
Stock up on your stats as
at the four Bundesliga goalkeepers to have had a massive say in their sides' unbeaten starts to the 2014/15 campaign.
Bogey team
After dropping points in their last two outings, Bayer 04 Leverkusen have plenty of
on Bundesliga leaders FC Bayern.
are unbeaten in eight against struggling VfB Stuttgart, though, with the south-west club winning just five of the two sides' last 21 meetings.
Many happy returns
All the best to Bayern's genial Brazilian centre-back,
, who sat down for an
chin-wag with
bundesliga.com
during the international break. Safe to say the 31-year-old will be out to make it a big day to savour with another three points against Bremen later this afternoon. The Bundesliga leaders are unbeaten in their last 11 top-flight outings, by the way.
Dedicated followers of Dortmund
BVB are also in action this afternoon, chasing their first league win since 13 September. Ilkay Gündogan, Marco Reus and Henrikh Mkhitaryan
at some point against promoted Köln following injury, with a sizeable backing making the relatively short trip to the RheinEnergieStadion despite a national rail strike. Check out the preview for that one
.
Greetings, one and all!
The wait is almost over for you, the fans, and, it seems, for Bayern's Bastian Schweinsteiger. The World Cup winner won't be involved this afternoon against rock-bottom Bremen, but he could turn out in the red and blue stripes of the 23-time Bundesliga champions
. While you digest that exciting piece of breakfast news, why not get the lowdown on today's top vs. bottom encounter courtesy of this rather riveting
. Less than five hours to go, folks!
Friday, 17 October
Relive Boateng's performance in that win for Hertha all those years ago (September 2006) here:
Wird geladen
D'r Bus kütt! // Off to Cologne! #bvb #dortmund #borussiadortmund #koebvb #gündogan
Trip down memory lane
Enjoy some of the best moments from classic Bayern vs. Bremen encounters down the years, courtesy of the official Bundesliga YouTube channel:
It's in the game... Nuri Sahin, Marco Reus and Ilkay Gündogan remain focused on regaining full fitness, but the trio, along with Australian youngster Mustafa Amini, found time to take each other on at FIFA 15 this week. Find out what happened by clicking on the video below...
Top vs. bottom:
The league leaders may be looking forward to the papal visit, but Pep Guardiola will have only one thing on his mind this weekend: SV Werder Bremen.