Hložek Scores Twice to Give Hoffenheim Win Over Stuttgart, Schick Also on Target

Czech forward Adam Hložek scored a brace, giving Hoffenheim a 2-1 win over Stuttgart in matchday 3 of the German Bundesliga. Another Czech international, Patrik Schick, also found the net in this round, scoring for Bayer Leverkusen against Augsburg.

Hložek opened the scoring in just the 13th minute, finishing off a swift counterattack with a shot into the far corner after a pass from Konte. Stuttgart equalized three minutes into the second half, capitalizing on confusion in the home defense — after defender Vladimír Coufal collided with goalkeeper Baumann, Mittelstädt slotted the ball into an empty net off a deflection from Coufal. Hložek then struck again in the 67th minute, netting the winner with a shot into the near corner.

This was Hoffenheim's first win of the season after two straight defeats. Hložek was on the pitch for 82 minutes, Coufal was substituted in the 69th minute, while Robin Hranáč did not feature in the match at all. Stuttgart, meanwhile, failed to build on their two consecutive victories, which included their opening Champions League group-stage match against Viking from Stavanger.

Schick Scores with a Backheel

In the Augsburg–Bayer Leverkusen clash, it was Cameroonian forward Kofane, not Schick, who started up front, putting Bayer ahead as early as the 18th minute. However, Augsburg — unbeaten until then — turned the game around early in the second half, with Austrian forward Gregoritsch scoring twice within ten minutes.

Schick came on after the hour mark and scored in the 89th minute with a backheel finish off a deflected shot from Tillman — his second goal of the season. The former Czech international has now scored in four consecutive matches. The final score was 2-2: Augsburg dropped points for the first time this season, while Bayer, after three rounds, now have one win, one loss and a draw.

Dortmund and Freiburg Keep Their Perfect Start

Dortmund beat Paderborn 3-0, claiming their fifth straight win across all competitions. Thanks to a brace from midfielder Nmecha in the final ten minutes and an early goal from forward Silva, the club won its first three league matches of a season for the first time since 2015/16. Paderborn, back in the Bundesliga after a six-year absence, have now gone three rounds without a win and are still waiting for their first goal of the new season.

Freiburg also remain perfect: coach Julian Schuster's side thrashed Mönchengladbach 5-0 at home for their sixth consecutive win in all competitions. Engelhardt and Matanović both scored twice. It's the first time in the club's history that they've won their opening three matches, while Mönchengladbach lost all three of their opening fixtures for the first time in 11 years and haven't won away in the Bundesliga since December last year.

Mainz suffered their first defeat of the season, losing 1-3 at home to Eintracht Frankfurt. Turkish winger Uzun scored twice in the Rhine-Main derby, with another goal coming from striker Burkardt, who scored against his former club. Tietz pulled one back a minute from time, netting his seventh goal in four matches, but it wasn't enough to stop Eintracht from claiming their first win of the season.

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Source: sport.cz