Modeste leads Hoffenheim to six of the best

Settling a score - that was what Hoffenheim's Kevin Volland spoke of before kick-off. Four minutes in, and the hosts were on their way towards doing just that as the returning Anthony Modeste exchanged a one-two with Sejad Salihovic before crossing for Roberto Firmino to loop an effort over Benaglio for his twelfth goal of the season.

It stunned the visitors but when Dieter Hecking's men did find their feet, they equalised. Luiz Gustavo won the ball in midfield, fed Perisic and his cross was nodded home by the unmarked Bas Dost. The pace of the game refused to slow down as Volland curled wide, before Salihovic forced a good save out of Benaglio from a whipped free kick on the left-hand side. Another Salihovic free kick was also saved, before the Swiss goalkeeper had to tip over a speculative effort from captain Andi Beck.

Flurry of goals

Salihovic was not to be denied though. His third set-piece proved the lucky one as teammate Niklas Süle rose superbly at the back post to head Hoffenheim into the lead. Only two minutes later, Sebastian Rudy split a wobbling Wolfsburg defence to find Modeste, who drilled into the far corner. A two-goal lead is sometimes not enough for TSG so when Modeste missed a good chance to make it 4-1 moments later, there was a tiny piece of anxiety still in the air. With two minutes left in the half, that anxiety was banished as Rudy and Modeste combined again for the Frenchman to head home a fourth.

Leading by three goals with 45 minutes to play is never an easy situation to be in, but Hoffenheim started the second half in the right frame of mind. Koen Casteels was forced to rush out and clear his lines on two occasions as Gisdol's men stood firm in the first quarter of an hour after the break. Wolfsburg were desperate to find a way back into the game, but TSG looked the more likely to score, Modeste in particular.

Furious final fifteen

 

There was no hat-trick for the marvellous Modeste, but minutes after coming off, Hoffenheim found themselves entering a nervous final fifteen as Perisic slid in de Bruyne's cross to reduce the deficit to two. Any sign of panic was eased though, when Salihovic clinically converted a penalty after Volland had recklessly been tackled late by Christian Träsch, who was promptly sent off. Gisdol's men weren't done there either as substitute Sven Schipplock fired in a sixth from the angle to complete the club's record league win and avenge their cup defeat in astonishing fashion.

Jonathan Harding

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim:Casteels – Beck, Süle, Strobl, Johnson (87' Toljan) – Polanski, Rudy – Volland, Firmino (88' Karaman), Salihovic – Modeste (72' Schipplock)

VfL Wolfsburg:Benaglio – Träsch, Naldo, Knoche (80' Olic), Rodriguez – Medojevic (46' Caligiuri), Luiz Gustavo – Arnold, de Bruyne, Perisic (84' Ochs) - Dost

 

Goals:1-0 Firmino (4'), 1-1 Dost (15'), 2-1 Süle (37'), 3-1 Modeste (39'), 4-1 Modeste (43'), 4-2 Perisic (76'), 5-2 Salihovic (82' pen.), 6-2 Schipplock (86')

 

Yellow cards: Knoche, Luiz Gustavo
Red cards: Träsch

Referee:Markus Schmidt

Attendance:24,000

Match facts and statistics »