RB Leipzig’s faint title hopes faded further after Krzysztof Piatek’s late penalty earned Hertha Berlin a point at an empty Red Bull Arena on Wednesday, Julian Nagelsmann’s side having been reduced to 10 men in a fluctuating Bundesliga encounter on Wednesday.
The result left Leipzig third on 55 points from 28 games, nine behind the leaders, Bayern Munich, and two adrift of second-placed Borussia Dortmund, while Hertha moved up one place to 10th on 35 points.
The visitors took a 10th-minute lead with a deft volley from the Serb midfielder Marko Grujic, on loan from Liverpool, before Lukas Klostermann levelled in the 24th with a precise header, ghosting away from his markers at the near post to meet a Christopher Nkunku corner.
Despite having Marcel Halstenberg dismissed in the 63rd minute for a second yellow card, Leipzig were in front five minutes later thanks to a calamitous error by the Hertha goalkeeper, Rune Jarstein, who fumbled Patrik Schick’s low shot over the line.
However, Leipzig could not hold on as the substitute Piatek earned a share of the spoils for the visitors with an 82nd-minute penalty, awarded after Matheus Cunha was fouled by Ademola Lookman.
Elsewhere Fortuna Düsseldorf piled the pressure on the Schalke manager, David Wagner, with a 2-1 home win that eased their own relegation worries. Schalke, without a win since January, saw their frustrations deepen as they allowed Düsseldorf to come from behind to win, with the aid of more poor goalkeeping from Markus Schubert.
Wagner’s side led through Weston McKennie’s 53rd-minute header but 10 minutes later Schubert was at fault as he failed to deal with Kevin Stöger’s free-kick and Rouwen Hennings headed in. Five minutes later Kenan Karaman headed in following a corner to give Uwe Rösler’s side three points.
Hoffenheim are on the fringes of the European places after a 3-1 home win over Cologne in which both sides finished with 10 men. Christoph Baumgartner put Hoffenheim ahead 11 minutes in and Cologne’s problems grew when Sebastiaan Bornauw was dismissed in the 26th minute.
Baumgartner doubled the lead in the first minute of the second half and Steven Zuber added another two minutes later. The Hoffenheim captain, Benjamin Hübner, was the next to see red, five minutes into the second half, helping Cologne get a goal back through Florian Kainz but there would be no comeback.
Ridle Baku ended a run of 40 Bundesliga games without a goal as he put Mainz in front at Union Berlin, but the match ended in a draw as Marcus Ingvartsen’s free-kick earned the hosts a point. Union played more than half the match with 10 men after Robert Andrich was booked twice before the break. Augsburg and Paderborn shared the points following a goalless draw.