Bundesliga Review: Bayern close in on title, Leverkusen up to third
Bayern Munich took another step towards retaining the Bundesliga title, as Bayer Leverkusen climbed to third at Hertha Berlin's expense.
Bayern Munich could be crowned Bundesliga champions as early as next weekend after a Robert Lewandowski double fired them to a 3-0 win over Schalke on Saturday.
Arturo Vidal also found the net at Allianz Arena as Pep Guardiola's men chalked up their 25th league win of the season.
Should second-placed Borussia Dortmund fail to win against Hamburg on Sunday, victory over Hertha Berlin next Saturday would see Bayern seal a fourth successive league title.
Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen climbed to third place as they secured a comfortable 3-0 home win over relegation-threatened Eintracht Frankfurt.
Kevin Kampl, Julian Brandt and Karim Bellarabi all scored in the second half for Roger Schmidt's side.
On a day of six home wins from six games in the German top flight, goals from Sandro Wagner and Konstantin Rausch helped Darmstadt down Ingolstadt 2-0, while a first-half effort from on-loan Real Sociedad striker Alfred Finnbogason eased Augsburg's relegation fears as they edged out Stuttgart 1-0.
Hertha Berlin slipped to fourth as they were beaten 2-1 at Hoffenheim despite taking the lead through Niklas Stark.
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Fabian Schar levelled for the hosts with his first goal of the season before Mark Uth bagged the winner five minutes from time.
Struggling Werder Bremen, meanwhile, earned their first win in five games as they defeated Wolfsburg 3-2.
Claudio Pizarro, Fin Bartels and Sambou Yatabare were the scorers for Viktor Skripnik's side, with Josuha Guilavogui and leading scorer Bas Dost replying in vain for the visitors.