Teams are on the brink of something at both ends of the table after this round of matches. With three games left in the Bundesliga season, here’s where everyone stands:
Bundesliga winners from Matchday 31
Bayern Munich
They just keep taking care of business, which is boring for us but great for them. The Bavarians’ easy 3-0 home win over Mainz means they need just one more win to claim the title.
Heidenheim
Mathias Honsak came in off the bench, and his 89th-minute dribbling run and goal gave the team a win at Stuttgart and the inside track for that playoff spot and a slim chance that they might catch Hoffenheim for 15th place and the safety that comes with it.
Shuto Machino
Surely someone has noticed that his name sounds like “shoot machine.” That’s what the Japanese attacker has been for Holstein Kiel, and he scored two goals against Borussia Mönchengladbach (including the stoppage-time match-winner) that pulls Kiel off the bottom of the table. It may not be enough to save the team from relegation, but if it isn’t, some other team will surely take their leading goal-scorer during the transfer window.
Borussia Dortmund
It looked like Hoffenheim had bitten the Dortmunders again after Robin Hranáč headed in a cross off a throw-in to tie the game up right as the clock hit 90:00 at the PreZero Arena. It was a particularly bitter blow for Dortmund, who threw away two points to the same team back in December when they couldn’t defend a throw-in during stoppage time. However, when Oliver Baumann came out of his goal to defend a breakaway chance, the ball came to Waldemar Anton, who put the ball in the empty net in the 95th minute to claim a huge 3-2 triumph for Dortmund. We should mention Daniel Svensson, too, who contributed by assisting on both of Dortmund’s earlier goals.
Czechs
Patrik Schick scored his 19th this season to open the scoring for Bayer Leverkusen in a victory over Augsburg that keeps the title race barely alive. As for Hoffenheim’s Czech contingent, not only did Hranáč score what should have been the equalizer, but Adam Hložek was restored to the starting lineup and found the back of the net to open the scoring. The land that gave us Franz Kafka, Antonín Dvořák, Martina Navratilova, and Jaromír Jágr can find a lot of joy in the Bundesliga this week.
Nikola Vasiljev
St. Pauli are not safe yet, but their goalless draw at Werder Bremen inched them ahead of Hoffenheim by one point. They have their Croatian goalkeeper to thank for that, as he pulled off one of the season’s great saves on a bouncing close-range header from Niklas Stark, which Vasiljev was able to just tip around the post. They'll cherish that point that he saved.
Bundesliga losers from Matchday 31
El Chadaille Bitshiabu
The RB Leipzig defender has been linked with some top-level teams during the coming transfer window, but the PSG academy graduate’s breakaway foul on Hugo Ekitiké got him sent off against Eintracht Frankfurt, and the resulting free kick led directly to Ansgar Knauff’s goal to put Eintracht Frankfurt up 2-0. His teammates crumbled and gave the Eagles a blowout win that leaves the Red Bulls on the outside looking in for the Champions League spots.
Maximilian Arnold
Speaking of red cards, the Wolfsburg midfielder saw one for his tackle on Junior Adamu when the game was scoreless, and Freiburg took advantage, winning the match on a goal from the oft-injured Max Rosenfelder. The loss doesn’t mean that much to the Wolves, though the three points keeps Freiburg ahead of Dortmund and Leipzig for that last Champions League spot.
Bochum
They are now at the bottom of the standings after both Heidenheim and Kiel won while they could only draw at home to Union Berlin. The Blues showed great character to come back after going down early, and they might have won it when Dani de Wit sent a 97th-minute effort toward goal, but Union goalkeeper Frederik Rønnow got a fingertip to the shot to deny Bochum two points. If they lose their next game against relegation rival Heidenheim, they go down.