Germany round-up: Bayern forge on despite draw

FC Bayern München moved nine points clear at the top of the 1. Bundesliga on Saturday despite being held to a scoreless draw by DSC Arminia Bielefeld.

Stellar clash
However, either second-placed SV Werder Bremen or BV Borussia Dortmund, in third, could reduce the gap when they face each other in the weekend’s most eagerly anticipated encounter on Sunday.

No creativity
Playing without Mehmet Scholl and Zé Roberto, who were both suffering from flu, and the suspended Michael Ballack, Bayern lacked creativity in midfield and struggled to impose themselves.

Elber effort
The closest the Bavarian club came to scoring was on six minutes when Brazilian striker Giovane Elber forced a smart save from goalkeeper Mathias Hain with a powerful shot from the edge of the box.

Wasted chance
Arminia were the brighter side after half-time when Momo Diabang’s header flew narrowly over the crossbar. The same player spurned the opportunity of the game on the hour mark when he headed straight at Kahn.

Agali double
FC Schalke 04 were leading 1. FC Kaiserslautern and would have gone second thanks to a goal in each half by Nigerian striker Victor Agali, only for Kaiserslautern defender Harry Koch to make it 2-2 in injury time.

Stuttgart hope
VfB Stuttgart, who beat Hertha BSC Berlin 3-1, overtook Schalke to go into fourth place and keep alive their hopes of a UEFA Champions League place.

Viorel winner
Ioannis Amanatidis put them in front in the 28th minute, then Aleksander Hleb doubled the lead. Marcelinho pulled a goal back in the 80th minute to give the visitors hope, but that was extinguished when Ioan Viorel Ganea slammed in a third for the home side.

Energie boost
In other matches, FC Energie Cottbus’ 2-1 victory over VfL Bochum took them off bottom spot, Hannover 96 won 1-0 away at TSV 1860 München to move clear of the relegation zone, while mid-table FC Hansa Rostock won 1-0 at FC Nürnberg. VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach's fixture with VfL Wolfsburg was postponed due to poor weather.