Bayern stay in contention

FC Bayern München closed the gap on Bundesliga leaders SV Werder Bremen as a late goal earned a narrow win against Hamburger SV.

Notable absentees
Bremen – who were held 0-0 at FC Schalke 04 in front of more than 60,000 supporters - remained seven points clear, but the champions kept alive their hopes of retaining their title with three points in Munich. Bayern were without goalkeeper Oliver Kahn and midfield player Michael Ballack due to a sore back and a heavy cold respectively, although coach Ottmar Hitzfeld was hopeful both would be back to face Real Madrid CF in the UEFA Champions League in midweek.

Demichelis on target
The home side struggled to break down their resolute visitors, but just as it seemed the match was drifting towards a draw, substitute Martin Demichelis was left unmarked in the penalty area to convert Roque Santa Cruz's pass three minutes from time and secure an important victory.

Stuttgart stumble
VfB Stuttgart - who face English side Chelsea FC in the Champions League - dropped three points behind Bayern as José Dominguez's fourth-minute strike proved enough for 1.FC Kaiserslautern to secure a win that moved them out of the relegation zone.

Bochum boost
Bayer 04 Leverkusen also lost ground in the title race, going down 3-1 at home to fifth-placed VfL Bochum 1848, who joined their opponents on 36 points. Two goals in three minutes, from Martin Meichelbeck and Dariusz Wosz, put Bochum in control of the match and, although Dimitar Berbatov halved the deficit on the hour, Leverkusen lost defender Juan to a red card 20 minutes from time. Mamadou Diabang wrapped up the win with a third goal three minutes later.

Wolfsburg win
VfL Wolfsburg climbed up to eighth place with a 3-1 win against TSV München 1860. Marino Biliskov and Andrés D'Alessandro gave Wolfsburg a two-goal cushion before 20 minutes had been played but Markus Weissenberger made it 2-1 almost immediately, only for Diego Klimowicz to seal the points two minutes past the hour.

Max power
Elsewhere, Martin Max scored twice as FC Hansa Rostock defeated Hannover 96 3-1, and goals from Tomislav Maric and Joonas Kolkka enabled VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach to come from 0-2 down to draw with SC Freiburg.

Sunday matches
On Sunday, BV Borussia Dortmund look to close the gap on the leading pack at home to bottom side 1.FC Köln, while Hertha BSC Berlin face fellow strugglers Eintracht Frankfurt.