Matchday 20 Bulletins
Cologne - Bundesliga leaders FC Bayern München notched their first win of the year thanks to a hard-earned 2-0 victory at VfB Stuttgart on Saturday, while struggling giants Borussia Dortmund moved off the foot of the table after a crucial 3-0 success away to SC Freiburg.
Monday 9 February
On Sunday, meanwhile, in-form SV Werder Bremen landed a surprise victory against Bayer 04 Leverkusen and FC Augsburg and Eintracht Frankfurt drew 2-2 in the weekend's final game.
bundesliga.com was on hand to keep you apprised of all the build-up and reaction to Matchday 20's games...
MATCHDAY 20 RESULTS
FC Schalke 04 1-0 Borussia Mönchengladbach
Hamburger SV 2-1 Hannover 96
1. FSV Mainz 05 0-2 Hertha Berlin
VfB Stuttgart 0-2 FC Bayern München
SC Freiburg 0-3 Borussia Dortmund
1. FC Köln 0-0 SC Paderborn
VfL Wolfsburg 3-0 TSG 1899 Hoffenheim
SV Werder Bremen 2-1 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
FC Augsburg 2-2 Eintracht Frankfurt
Thanks and goodbye
That brings an end to our live coverage from Matchday 20. To relive the best of the action from the weekend, please visit our Watch page for all the highlights as well as exclusive video interviews. The Matchday Bulletins will return on Friday morning as we build up to round 21 of the current season, but in the meantime we'll be keeping you up to date with all the latest from the German top flight right here.
Want more Bundesliga Action?
Have your say
You've seen the weekend's action (if not, then head here) and now we want to hear from you. Who do you think was worthy of the Matchday 20 Player of the Week title? Check out three contenders below, courtesy of the official Bundesliga YouTube channel, and then head here to cast your vote. The results will be announced on Tuesday.
Bonus for Bremen
The outlook is decidedly positive for Werder Bremen at present, as they're the only Bundesliga team to have won all three of their fixtures so far in 2015. There was more good news on Monday too, as youngster
put pen to paper on his first professional contract with the club. Congratulations!
Wrap up warm, Thomas!
Bronze medal for Makiadi
Get involved!
A quick reminder of the candidates in our Matchday 20 Goal of the Week vote. Let us know which strike YOU think is the best by casting your vote on our Fanzone page!
Click here for the players' reaction to the draw in Augsburg...
Köln's defence seems impenetrable at present, but Peter Stöger might be a little concerned at his team's lack of firepower at the other end...
I reckon BVB probably deserve a day off, don't you?
Sunday 8 February
TEAM NEWS:
The line-ups are in for the weekend's final encounter between Augsburg and Frankfurt...
TEAM NEWS:
Franco Di Santo is LEFT OUT of Werder Bremen's starting XI against Leverkusen this afternoon.
'The sun is shining in Bremen. In just under three hours, the Werkself will be going for all three points!!', reads the tweet below...
Frankfurt are still searching for their first Rückrunde win after losing to Freiburg and drawing with Wolfsburg on Matchdays 18 and 19 respectively...
Danger man
He may not yet have found the target in 2015 but Eintracht Frankfurt forward is still the Bundesliga's leading scorer this term, and he'll be aiming to add to his 13-goal tally in Augsburg this evening. Check out his five best league goals in the video below, courtesy of the Bundesliga's official YouTube channel:
Happy birthday!
Meanwhile, Bremen's opponents this afternoon, Leverkusen, have a birthday boy in their ranks: none other than
, who turns 21 today. The set-piece wizard was on target against Bremen the last time the teams met back in September. Can he do the same again today?
Saturday 7 February
Goodbye and until tomorrow!
We'll be keeping you up to date with everything that's Matchday 20 right here again on Sunday so you don't miss any of the key reaction as well as the build-up to SV Werder Bremen's home game against Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Eintracht Frankfurt's visit to FC Augsburg. Bis morgen!
The best of the players' social media reaction to Saturday's games
Team news
Line-ups
The action is approaching and here are all the line-ups for the five games at 15:30 CET/14:30 GMT. Sit back and enjoy the action, then make sure you come back here for the reaction and build-up to this evening's game!
Solidarity
What a gesture by Bundesliga 2 side FC Union Berlin! In the seventh minute of their game against VfL Bochum, play came to a halt and the home team all lined up with number seven shirts to applaud their midfielder Benjamin Köhler, who was
diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma
earlier this week. Respect!
Be prepared!
Hopefully you will now know how you are going to catch the Bundesliga action this weekend. If not, then this is a warning of the kind of thing that can happen if you have to fumble around for the remote control at kick-off time:
#Teamkaching
That is the hashtag used by SC Paderborn forward Elias Kachunga as he says he is ready for this afternoon's game at 1. FC Köln.
Bundesliga 2
Before this afternoon's Bundesliga action, one level below there are some interesting games coming up. This tweet below says that 3,000 FC St. Pauli fans have made the trip to SV Sandhausen in a big game for both clubs down at the bottom. Remember you can follow all the Bundesliga 2 action on our
.
Back in training
Bayern were unable to take their full squad on the short trip to Stuttgart with two key players left behind to step up their comeback attempts. Can you guess who they are?
It'd take a brave man to bet against the Dutchman finding the back of the net today...
Matchday Tweets
With only a matter of hours to go until kick-off on this Matchday 20 Saturday, the clubs and players are building up the excitement...
Southern classic
One of the south of Germany's biggest games takes place later today and judging by things, the two teams cannot wait to go into battle:
Friday 6 February
Schalke go third
After a game of few chances at the Veltins Arena, Schalke have come out on top thanks to Tranquillo Barnetta's goal on his 250th Bundesliga appearance.
Rookie stopper
As expected, 19-year-old Schalke goalkeeper Timon Wellenreuther has been named in the starting XI for tonight's clash with Gladbach. Kevin-Prince Boateng also starts. That one kicks off at 20:30 CET, remember...
Countdown to kick-off
90 minutes to go until the Matchday 20 action gets under way between Schalke and Gladbach at the Veltins Arena, reads this tweet from the Borussia camp...
Dortmund in a hurry
Things are getting critical for the Yellow Blacks...
Smile for the camera
Holger Badstuber's last league appearance this season was at home to Stuttgart on Matchday 3: Will he play this weekend with Jerome Boateng suspended?
Baba celebrating
Augsburg's Abdul Rahman Baba can look forward to facing Cote d'Ivoire in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations 2015, after he helped Ghana see off hosts Equatorial Guinea on Thursday.
Kachunga targets Billy Goats scalp
Paderborn's Elias Kachunga hasn't scored since early December - he'll be hoping to change that statistic against Köln on Saturday.
Royal Blue blood
Now there's a fan who loves her club...
Worries for Bremen fans?
After picking up two wins in their opening two games of 2015, things could hardly be going better on the field for Werder Bremen ahead of Sunday's hosting of Bayer Leverkusen. However, two men who have been key to their revival,
and
, as well as the scorer of the winning goal against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim in midweek,
, were all absent from this afternoon's training, the club confirmed on Twitter.
All systems go
After what has been, by their impeccable standards, an under-par start to the
, FC Bayern have been going through the final paces (in the snow!) ahead of travelling to Stuttgart
at 15.30 tomorrow afternoon.
Eintracht Frankfurt have been preparing for their visit to Augsburg in 'sunny and windy' conditions:
Taking it to the rack!
It's well documented that certain members of FC Bayern's star-studded squad are basketball fans. Bastian Schweinsteiger is a regular at FC Bayern Basketball's Audi Dome, while the likes of David Alaba seized on the chance to take in an NBA encounter during the Bavarians' summer tour of the USA. Their interest has now stretched to shooting some hoops of their own as a novel way of preparing for their upcoming fixture with VfB Stuttgart. Though take a moment to sympathize with Javi Martinez, who looked like he was itching to join in the fun.
Moment of remembrance
The day Manchester United's Busby Babes perished in a tragic plane crash upon take-off in Munich was a day that shook the footballing world to its core, but will forever be remembered.
Them's fighting words
Stefan Kießling is a proven Bundesliga goalscorer, but it appears that SV Werder Bremen head coach Viktor Skripnik believes Sunday's opponents Bayer 04 Leverkusen should be more concerned about his own Argentinian secret weapon.
All for one and one for all
It's often quoted that "a picture is worth 1,000 words" and given Borussia Dortmund's current plight at the foot of the Bundesliga standings, it seems to be a fitting way to analyse BVB's latest tweet.
Back of the onion bag
From Ruud van Nistelrooy to Kevin De Bruyne, there have been plenty of winter signings that have found the back of the net in Germany's top flight. Andre Schürrle will be hoping to add to the list, but for now here are the top 10 goals scored by players that have moved clubs in January courtesy of the Bundesliga's official YouTube channel:
Eyeing a road win
Set to take on VfB Stuttgart on Saturday, FC Bayern head coach Pep Guardiola is hoping his side can make up for a poor outing last time they were on their travels - a 4-1 loss to VfL Wolfsburg - after seeing an improved performance in the 1-1 draw against FC Schalke 04.
No rush for Deyverson
1. FC Köln signed Brazilian forward Deyverson on loan from Portuguese outfit CF Belenenses on deadline day, but are taking their time in helping the 23-year-old acclimatize to life with the Billy Goats and in the Bundesliga.
Prepared for battle
With club captain Martin Stranzl out of action after taking a blow to the head in Gladbach's 1-0 win over SC Freiburg during midweek, Spanish centre-back Alvaro Dominguez is set to slot in a the heart of the Foals defence.
Strong record
Borussia Mönchengladbach are looking to secure a Bundesliga first over the Royal Blues, who themselves are current enjoying their longest-ever unbeaten run under Roberto Di Matteo having avoided defeat in their last four top-flight outings.
Raring to go!
Both teams appear to be eagerly anticipating getting the action underway on Matchday 20...