Hertha Berlin defeated Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 at the Olympiastadion on Saturday.
Goals from Vladimir Darida and John Brooks were enough despite a Javier Hernandez equaliser in the 29th minute.
It was a potent display from the home side who showed attacking intent from the get-go and that saw them rewarded with an early goal. A red card to Sebastian Boenisch severely damaged the visitors’ hopes of securing any points on the road.
Hertha were clearly the better outfit, dominating in every department as well as the scoreboard. The result sees them jump to fourth with 26 points, level with third-placed Borussia Monchengladbach. Meanwhile, Leverkusen sit in eighth with 21 points.
Hertha Berlin
Rune Almenning – 6: Did not have a lot on his plate, but he dealt with everything that came his way, excluding the Hernandez goal.
Yanni Regasel – 7: Took advantage of the early red card to drive forward on the occasion, while helping his side maintain a good defensive structure.
Fabian Lustenberger – 6.5: Was beaten easily a few times, but made some important defensive contributions.
John Anthony Brooks – 8.5: Solid at the back and netted the second for the hosts with a thunderous header via a delightful Marvin Plattenhardt corner delivery. Almost doubled his tally when he connected with a volley, but it was straight at Leno.
Marvin Plattenhardt – 7: Dished out the final blow when his corner met the head of Brooks, proving to be the match-winner. Also a great defensive display.
Vladimir Darida – 8: Scored the opening goal following a fantastic passage of team play. Was a pivotal in his midfield role.
Per Ciljan Skjelbred – 7: His partnership with Darida in the middle of the park proved to be a key factor in the midfield battle, with the hosts cancelling out the visitors’ creativity.
Mitchell Weiser – 6: No significant contributions, but was influential in particular instances of the match.
Genki Haraguchi – 6: Once again, no outstanding feats in the 90 minutes but proved to be important on that left side of midfield.
Salomon Kalou – 5.5: Made his presence felt early on but phased out of proceedings.
Vedad Ibisevic – 7: His key pass led to the ice-breaker. The Bosnian was constantly a part of link-up play in forward transitions.
Substitutes
Alexander Baumjohan – N/A: Featured for less than 15 minutes.
Jens Hegeler – N/A: Introduced in the 85th minute.
Johannes van den Bergh – N/A: Replaced Haraguchi in the 90th minute.
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