Bundesliga Review: 10-Man Schalke Lose At Wolfsburg

Title hopefuls Schalke 04 started the new German Bundesliga season on a losing note after they were beaten 2-1 by their hosts VFL Wolfsburg in a week 1 clash on Saturday.

American defender John Brooks gave the home side a first half lead and that was how it stayed until Schalke 04 centre back Matija Nastatic was sent off on 65 minutes with the aid of the Video Assistant Referees (VARs).

Goalscorer Brooks turned from hero to villain when he was penalised in the box thus paving the way for Algerian international midfielder Nabil Bentaleb to equalise for 10-man Schalke from the spot after 86 minutes.

Last season’s runners-up were, however, not level for long after German striker Daniel Ginczek scored the winner for the hosts in added time.

In the pick of the other league games, Jonas Hofmann (penalty) and Fabian Johnson scored within three second half minutes to give Borussia Moenchengladbach a 2-0 home win over Bayer Leverkusen.

Week 1 Results:

Hertha Berlin 1-0 Nurnberg

Fortuna Dusseldorf 1-2 Augsburg

Werder Bremen 2-1 Hannover 96

Freiburg 0-2 Eintracht Frankfurt

Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0 Bayer Leverkusen

VFL Wolfsburg 2-1 Schalke 04