Schalke hit Bundesliga summit

Kevin Kuranyi's 14th Bundesliga goal of the season earned FC Schalke 04 a 2-1 victory against VfB Stuttgart which lifted the Gelsenkirchen club a point clear of FC Bayern München at the top of the table.

Following a scoreless first half, the match exploded into life with three goals in ten minutes immediately after the break. Edu (46) put the hosts ahead with a right-footed shot seconds after replacing Jefferson Farfán, only for Serdar Tasci (50) to restore parity by heading in Zdravko Kuzmanović's cross from close range. However, Kuranyi (55) restored Schalke's lead and drew level with Bayer 04 Leverkusen forward Stefan Kiessling at the top of the scoring charts when he finished off Heiko Westermann's pass.

The loss is only Stuttgart's second in all competitions since Christian Gross suceeded Markus Babbel in December and ends a run of five away league games unbeaten ahead of their UEFA Champions League first knockout round decider at FC Barcelona on Wednesday. Schalke, meanwhile, will drop back down to second if Bayern defeat second-bottom SC Freiburg on Saturday. Third-placed Leverkusen, four points behind Schalke, host Hamburger SV the following day.