Popp brace inspires Bayer defeat as Bayern keep pressure: Frauen-Bundesliga Week 14 Round Up

· Eintracht Frankfurt clash against Werder Bremen rescheduled to Tuesday evening

· Hoffenheim cruised to fourth consecutive win with a 4-0 home win over Meppen on Sunday

An Alexandra Popp brace inspired reigning champions Wolfsburg to maintain their lead at the top of the Bundesliga standings with a 4-1 win away to Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday afternoon.

Popp opened the account for Wolfsburg with a strike just 13 minutes into the first half off a Lena Lattwein assist before she doubled the visitors lead just three minutes later off a Svenja Huth assist and Wolfsburg would take their lead into the break.

The 31-year-old attacker overtook teammate Ewa Pajor in the race for the Golden Boot Award and now leads the pack on the Bundesliga goal charts with 10 goals.

65th minute substitute midfielder Jule Brand made it 3-0 to Wolfsburg with a strike just a minute after coming on before 64th minute substitute forward Tabea Waßmuth put the match to bed with a strike 12 minutes from time off a Pajor assist to secure a crucial full set of points for Tommy Stroot’s side.

Die Wölfinnen remain at the apex of the Bundesliga standings on 39 points from 13 wins in 14 outings whilst Leverkusen slipped to seventh from sixth with 16 points from five wins and a draw in the same number of encounters.

Meanwhile, Bayern Munich maintained pressure at the top with a 4-0 demolition of lowly Duisburg at the FC Bayern Campus Platz 1 on Friday evening.

Midfielder Sydney Lohmann opened the account for Bayern with a strike on 19 minutes and the hostesses would take their slender lead into the break.

Last season’s Golden Boot Award winner Lea Schüller doubled their lead 15 minutes into the second half with an assist from fellow forward Klara Bühl, taking her goal tally to nine for the term and becoming joint-second top scorer in the current Bundesliga campaign alongside Wolfsburg’s Pajor and Freiburg’s Janina Minge.

Forward Lina Magull made it 3-0 with a strike just two minutes later with an assist from midfielder Sarah Zadrazil before Englishwoman Georgia Stanway sealed the win for the Bavarians from the penalty spot on 71 minutes.

Bayern remain second on the standings on 37 points from 12 wins and a draw in 14 ties whilst Duisburg also remain ninth on 13 points from four wins and a draw in the same number of contests.

Paulina Krumbiegel scored a brace as Hoffenheim cruised to a fourth consecutive win with a 4-0 home victory over Meppen to go third on the standings and keep pressure on Eintracht Frankfurt, whose match against Werder Bremen was rescheduled to Tuesday evening.

Midfielder Chantal Hagel opened the account for Hoffenheim with a strike just eight minutes into the second half with an assist from Kosovan midfielder Erëleta Memeti before Krumbiegel doubled the lead with a strike eight minutes later off 59th minute substitute Belgian utility player Tine De Caigny’s assist.

Krumbiegel struck again just four minutes later to make it 3-0 to Hoffenheim with an assist from defender Katharina Naschenweng before the latter went on the scoresheet with a strike 12 minutes from time off 67th minute substitute attacker Melissa Kössler’s assist.

Hoffenheim have collected 29 points from nine wins and two draws in 14 encounters whilst Meppen have registered 13 points from four wins and a draw in the same number of outings.

SGS Essen bounced back from a 1-1 draw with Meppen the previous weekend to win 2-1 against Freiburg on Sunday afternoon.

Forward Ramona Maier opened the scoring for Essen just two minutes into the second half off a Lena Ostermeier assist before doubling the hostesses’ lead 10 minutes later off a Julia Debitzki assist.

Midfielder Judith Steinert pulled one back for Freiburg just four minutes later with an assist from Giovanna Hoffmann but it would not be enough to stop the hostesses from collecting the all-important three points.

Essen rose from seventh to sixth on the standings on 17 points from five wins and two draws in 14 contests whilst Freiburg remained fifth on 22 points from seven wins and a draw in the same number of ties.

RESULTS: Friday 10 March, 2023 (Bayern München 4 – 0  MSV 02 Duisburg)

RESULTS: Saturday 11 March, 2023 (SV Werder Bremen *Postponed* Eintracht Frankfurt)

RESULTS: Sunday 12 March, 2023 (TSG 1899 Hoffenheim 4 – 0 SV Meppen)

RESULTS: Sunday 12 March, 2023 (Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1 – 4 VfL Wolfsburg)

RESULTS: Sunday 12 March, 2023 (SGS Essen 2 – 1 SC Freiburg)

RESULTS: Sunday 12 March, 2023 (FFC Turbine Potsdam *Postponed* 1. FC Köln)