Shorthanded Hoffenheim suffer complete meltdown, blow 3-0 lead against Bremen

The crisis engulfing TSG 1899 Hoffenheim - after a brief midweek respite - looks sure to deepen now. Pellegrinio Matarazzo's team (after being reduced to ten men) blew a 3-0 lead at home against Ole Werner's SV Werder Bremen. The hosting Kraichgauer appeared both ill-disciplined and tactically disorganized as Bremen scored four unanswered goals. Aided by a new attack-minded role for Mitchelll Weiser and a Jens Stage hat-trick, Werner's crew made absolute mincemeat out of the Sinsheimers before their home crowd. 

Despite the heavy defeat against Bayern last round, Werner employed just two personnel changes to the team. Julian Malatini replaced Amos Pieper in central defense. Attacker Marco Grüll found himself benched in favor of flanker Derrick Köhn. The second personnel shift - as many had envisioned - led to Felix Agu being shifted over to the right wingback role while Weiser moved up to help out Werder's flagging striker corps. 

Matarazzo made three changes to the XI that drew FC Midtjylland midweek. Mërgim Berisha returned to spearhead the attack over Haris Tabakovic. Pavel Kaderabek also returned to take over for Valentin Gendrey at right wing-back. Alexander Prass played opposite Kaderabek, replacing Jacob Bruun Larsen in the lineup. Marius Bülter, who had worked as the left wing-back in Denmark - moved up a row to take Bruun Larsen's place in attack. 

Matarazzo's men could not have started the match better. The Sinsheimers generated three quality scoring chances before Marius Bülter found the back of the net in the 5th. From is forward position, Bülter skillfully lobbed the ball over onrushing keeper Michael Zetterer for the 1-0. Within three minutes, Bülter bagged a scorer's brace. Werner's crew appeared completely unfit to play. 

A bad Bremen midfield ball loss sent the German veteran through. Bülter totally outclassed marking SV defender Anthony Jung before slotting home the 8th minute 2-0. The Hanseatic guests went into full meltdown mode. A completely disoriented Bremen troop lost the ball again in midfield. Zetterer managed to save another Bülter effort, but Adam Hlozek stuffed home the rebound for the 12th-minute 3-0. 

With hosts up by three goals before a quarter-of-an-hour had been played, few observers could have been forgiven for thinking that the match was over. Prass very nearly netted the 4-0 in the 17th. Suddenly, however, the trailing team were gifted a lifeline. TSG defender Stanley Nsoki was sent off on a straight red in the 18th for hauling down Agu when the SV wing-back had a clear path to the net. 

Werder wasted no time in capitalizing on the man-advantage. Before Matarazzo could react to the red card tactically, the Hanseaten pulled two goals back. Weiser fired the first warning shot in the 20th. Malatini scored the 1-3 off the ensuing corner. As Matarazzo's tactical sub awaited to check in, Jens Stage polished off a Marvin Ducksch cross to make it 2-3 in the 27th.

Defender Tim Drexler checked in for Berisha seconds later. The new TSG back-five nevertheless failed to stanch the bleeding for very long. A stray pass from Prass kicked off an SV counter in the 39th. Stage grabbed his second goal of the evening when a deflected Agu cross landed at his feet. Incredibly, Bremen's three unanswered goals led to a 3-3 half-time scoreline. 

Matarazzo reacted to his team's implosion by bringing on Gendrey and Anton Stach at the half. The TSG defending failed to improve. Stage completed his hat trick in the 49th courtesy of atrocious marking in the box off a corner from virtually the entire Hoffenheim squad. Köhn might have added a fifth some four minutes later were it not for the offside flag.

To their credit, the Kraichgauer gradually found their feet and began to fight their way back into the game. A TSG breakaway in the 67th might have yielded a red card when last Bremen defender Malatini employed a tough challenge on Gendrey, but match-official Tobias Reichel ruled that Malatini played the ball and didn't maliciously follow through. 

There was some more excitement nine minutes from the end of normal time. A bad error from Zetterer - who didn't necessarily help his case for the German national team out with this performance - saw a tame effort from the subbed-on Bruun Larsen squirt through onto the line. Malatini came to his keeper's rescue with a clearance. Thursday's hero Max Moerstedt then shot over. 

That would be the end of the TSG attack. Weiser and Grüll missed a double chance to extend the lead deep into extra time. After winning their opening day match, Hoffenheim have now dropped four consecutive league matches and have slipped into the relegation playoff place.