Schalke back to winning ways

FC Schalke 04 stretched their lead at the top of the Bundesliga with a 1-0 win against VfB Stuttgart and in the process dealt a severe blow to Stuttgart's title chances.

Krastjic winner
It was first against third at the Arena auf Schalke and it was the league leaders who came out on top in a tight match thanks to Mladen Krstajić's 76th-minute strike. The victory ended a four-match winless streak for Schalke who moved on to 53 points, six ahead of second-placed Werder Bremen who play 1. FSV Mainz 05 at the Weserstadion on Sunday.

Bayern beaten
A terrific afternoon for Schalke got better still with the news that FC Bayern München had lost 1-0 away at Eintracht Frankfurt. Bayern manager Ottmar Hitzfeld signed a new deal on Thursday following his side's recent improvement, but Christoph Preuss's superb overhead flick with 12 minutes to play ensured they ended the day nine points off the pace. Bayern are fourth, out of the UEFA Champions League places, and must now beat the leaders when the two sides meet on 31 March after the international break if they are to remain in the title race.

Hamburg revival
Hamburger SV drew 0-0 for the second match in succession, this time away from home against Hannover 96, to continue their revival. VfL Wolfsburg climbed to the safety of mid-table with a 3-1 success against VfL Bochum 1848, who are just three points off the bottom, one ahead of DSC Arminia Bielefeld who suffered a 2-0 away defeat at TSV Alemannia Aachen. BV Borussia Dortmund ended a three-game losing streak by drawing 0-0 with 1. FC Nürnberg to put some daylight between themselves and the relegation places.