Opposition Form Report: Hamburg, Dortmund Lose Ahead of Bayern Clashes

DFB-Pokal

Hertha Berliner SC (3-0) Hamburger SV

1-0 BSC: Änis Ben-Hatira (59')
2-0 BSC: John Heitinga (65')
3-0 BSC: Änis Ben-Hatira (85')

The Josef Zinnbauer honeymoon appears to be over. Hamburg controlled much of this match (which is not saying much either), and yet could not find the breakthrough they needed. Ben-Hatira ultimately cut them open in the second half, and poor marking allowed Heitinga to get his first Bundesliga goal of the season. Hamburg have scored a meager three goals in the Bundesliga, not exactly the recipe for a cup competition.

Hamburg XI (4-2-3-1): Drobny – Götz, Djourou, Westermann, Ostrzolek – Behrami, Arslan (Holtby 46') – Müller, van der Vaart (Green 65'), Jansen – Lasogga (Naifu 74')

Bundesliga

Borussia Dortmund (0-1) Hannover 96

0-1 H96: Hiroshi Kiyotake (62')

Dortmund may look dominant in the Champions League so far this season, but the hangover from their victories have stagnated their Bundesliga campaign. Players that were full of life at midweek looked tired at the weekend. which proves to be a major disadvantage against a tactically disciplined Hannover 96 team. Kiyotake's goal came on a clinically taken free kick, and Dortmund had the scoring chances that could have put the match away. The returns of Ilkay Gündogan and Sven Bender to form will not mean anything if Jürgen Klopp's cavalry cannot find the necessary breakthroughs.

Dortmund XI (4-4-2): Weidenfeller – Piszczek, Subotić, Hummels, Durm (Papastathopoulos 77')– Mkhitaryan, Gündoğan (Kagawa 67'), Bender, Reus  – Aubameyang, Ramos (Immobile 77')

UEFA Champions League

Sampdoria (0-0) AS Roma

No one can fault Rudi Garcia for rotating his squad with another midweek match upcoming, but the players brought on for support could not replicate the fluidity Roma started the Serie A campaign with. Roma's best chances came when Gervinho would go beast mode, dribbling by players and leaving defenders in the dust. Alessandro Florenzi nearly found an opener late in the match, but Sergio Romero instinctually pushed it away from point-blank range. While it is unfair to evaluate Roma on this result, the fact that they have scored half as many goals on the road than they have at home is worth noting.

Roma XI (4-3-3): De Sanctis – Torosidis, Yanga-Mbiwa, Astori, Holebas – Florenzi (Iturbe 83'), De Rossi, Nainggolan – Ljajić (Pjanić 71'), Totti (Destro 78'), Gervinho

West Ham United (2-1) Manchester City

1-0 WHU: Morgan Amalfitano (27')
2-0 WHU: Diafra Sakho (75')
2-1 MCFC: David Silva (77')

It was clear from the outset that Manchester City's trip to Moscow played a roll in their match against fourth-place West Ham. Their build-up idled early in the match, and poor defending from Frenchmen Gaël Clichy and Eliaquim Mangala allowed Morgan Amalfitano to slot one past Joe Hart. Sergio Agüero and Yaya Touré tried to get them back into the game, but the ball just did not bounce their way. David Silva squiggled past four defenders and curled a goal to get the Citizens back into the game, but their late-efforts did not do enough to force a point on the road.

Manchester City XI (4-4-2): Hart – Zabaleta, Kompany, Mangala, Clichy (Kolarov 78') – Jesús Navas, Touré, Fernando (Milner 78'), David Silva – Edin Džeko (Jovetić 59'), Agüero

FK Ufa (3-3) CSKA Moskva

1-0 Ufa: Felicio Brown Forbes (12')
1-1 CSKA: Vasilly Berezutski (44')
2-1 Ufa: Maksim Semakin (50')
2-2 CSKA: Bibras Natcho (P 59')
3-2 Ufa: Nikolay Safronidi (87')
3-3 CSKA: Bibras Natcho (P 90+4')

The result was CSKA's second comeback this week were Natcho equalized on a penalty, but this point unfolded in a much uglier way. They came out a bit slow, not really getting into the match until Brown Forbes tapped the ricochet of his own header past Igor Akinfeev in the 12th minute. Luckily for CSKA, Ufa's recklessness allowed Natcho to drain two more penalties, salvaging a point for their first draw of the Russian Premier League season. One could also chalk this up to complacency following midweek extracurriculars, but a pattern remains: CSKA have conceded the first goal in five of their last six matches, four of which have come in the first half-an-hour.

CSKA XI (4-2-3-1): Akinfeev – Mário Fernandes, V. Berezutski, Ignashevich, Shennikov – Natcho, Wernbloom – Eremenko, Dzagoev, Milanov (Doumbia 55') – Musa (Tošić 75')