Freiburg moved into third place in the Bundesliga table on Sunday following a 2-0 home victory against Union Berlin. The Black Forest side, who were beaten Europa League finalists last season, now sit on 19 points, trailing Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund by two points.
The match remained even during the first half. After the break, Freiburg became more impressive, eventually forcing Union captain Rani Khedira into an own goal nine minutes into the second half. Yuito Suzuki added a second goal with 67 minutes gone after a chip from winger Derry Scherhant.
Despite the win, Freiburg's captain Vincenzo Grifo missed a penalty in the 84th minute. Union goalkeeper Frederik Ronnow prevented a larger margin of victory by saving that penalty and making several other saves. Scherhant told DAZN, "We knew our chances would come and we managed to convert them well."
Earlier on Sunday, Bayer Leverkusen defeated local rivals Cologne 2-1 in a tense derby. The win moved Leverkusen to fifth in the standings. Aleix Garcia opened the scoring in the seventh minute with a free-kick into the top-left corner. Just before halftime, Garcia found Jarell Quansah, but the England centre-back headed just wide.
The second half saw Cologne grow frustrated, receiving five of their six yellow cards during the period. While Patrik Schick had a goal ruled out for handball with ten minutes to go, he scored on the counter five minutes later to make it 2-1. This was Schick's eighth goal in nine league appearances this season.
Cologne winger Said El Mala scored in stoppage time, but the goal was not enough to spark a comeback. The hosts finished in 15th place, two points above Union Berlin, who remain in the relegation play-off spot. The derby, situated just 10 kilometres (six miles) apart, saw 11 yellow cards issued.
In a late game on Sunday, Hoffenheim secured a 2-1 win at promoted Schalke. Fisnik Asllani and Tim Lemperle scored for the Hoffenheim side.
