Looking Around the League: Shuffling for European Spots

Another week is in the books, and Borussia Dortmund remains in second place. This weekend’s “big matchup” between Bayern Munich and Schalke 04 produced fewer fireworks than North Korea on the 4th of July, keeping Bayern in the league's driver's seat. With two games remaining, BVB is running out of opportunities to surpass the Bavarians.

Elsewhere, Hertha Berlin received another clobbering, Bochum clambered out of the relegation zone, and Leverkusen let their European position slip.

Results

Köln 5 - 2 Hertha Berlin

Bayern Munich 6 - 0 Schalke

Union Berlin 4 - 2 Freiburg

Frankfurt 3 - 0 Mainz

Wolfsburg 2 - 1 Hoffenheim

Bochum 3 - 2 Augsburg

Dortmund 5 - 2 Monchengladbach

Stuttgart 1 - 1 Leverkusen

Leipzig 2 - 1 Werder Bremen

Standings

Bundesliga.com

05ers take an 0-3

Tough. That’s all that can be said for Mainz. After a week where Eintracht Frankfurt kept their disarray on display and lost to bottom-dwelling Hoffenheim, Mainz would have felt good about their chances of downing the Eagles. Unfortunately, it was not so lucky for Bo Svensson’s side, who slid to ninth with their loss. It’s a difficult time to be in the Bundesliga midtable, and Mainz learned that the hard way this weekend. The 05ers were only three points adrift of a European competition spot, and with Leverkusen dropping points, it would have been an outstanding opportunity to close the gap. Unfortunately, it is now a major uphill battle for Mainz to take anything away from this season.

Glad to Get ‘Bach on Vacation

Rough outing for the foals. It was astounding to see Gladbach in such disarray, but as the title suggests, they seemed to have half a mind on the beach. If not for committed veterans like Lars Stindl the game would have looked even more lopsided. As I mentioned in the preview, Gladbach had very little to play for in this match, with no chance to do anything meaningful this season, nor the chance to get relegated. It’s an unfortunate reality at the end of the season, but the away fans deserved a better outing from their side.

Hoffenheim are clawing their way off the bottom of the table. Can they stay up with two games remaining? Let us know in the comments.