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Hertha beat misfiring Schalke to extend perfect start
BERLIN: Hertha Berlin maintained their 100 percent Bundesliga record with a 2-0 win over Schalke 04 to set up a top-of-the-table clash on Wednesday against Bayern
BERLIN: Hertha Berlin maintained their 100 percent Bundesliga record with a 2-0 win over Schalke 04 to set up a top-of-the-table clash on Wednesday against Bayern Munich.
Hertha’s victory on Sunday means they are only second in the German league table on goal difference behind Bayern with the only teams boasting a perfect three wins from three in Germany’s top flight poised to meet at Munich’s Allianz Arena in midweek.
Superb second-half goals from ex-Bayern midfielder Mitchell Weiser and Swiss midfielder Valentin Stocker at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium gave Hertha three more points.
A superb pass from Slovakia’s Peter Pekarik was met in mid-air by Weiser who volleyed home to the delight of the home fans in the 50,000-strong crowd on 64 minutes.
Hertha doubled their lead in emphatic fashion ten minutes later when Weiser’s pass found Stocker in space behind the Schalke defence and the Swiss international showed great control before slamming his shot home.
ADURIZ SCORES BRACE IN BILBAO WIN
MADRID: Aritz Aduriz scored two first-half goals Sunday to give Athletic Bilbao a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Valencia, the only team to have lost all four games to start the season.
Celta Vigo was held to a 0-0 draw at promoted Osasuna and also remained win-less.
Valencia went ahead with a close-range, left-footed shot by midfielder Alvaro Medran just two minutes into the match at San Mames Stadium.
Veteran striker Aduriz equalized with a header off a free-kick cross in the 24th and scored the winner with a right-footed shot from inside the area into the top corner.
“When you go down a goal against a team like Valencia, it’s difficult to come back and we were able to do it,” Aduriz said. “These are difficult matches and we deserve a lot of credit for this victory.”
“We have to keep working hard and the victories will come, we haven’t been playing badly,” Valencia defender Martin Montoya said. “We know that our team is capable of improving and getting the results that we deserve.”
