Ex-Liverpool man among Bundesliga's star men so far

Bayern Munich maintained their seven-point gap at the top of the Bundesliga with their entertaining 4-2 win at Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday, while Borussia Dortmund kept their faint title hopes alive with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Hertha Berlin in the day's late kick off. Elsewhere, RB Leipzig dropped points at the death at the expense of table footers Paderborn as we take a look at the best performers from the gameweek so far in Germany's top tier... 

Freiburg 1-0 Gladbach - Nicolas Hofler 

Gladbach lost ground in their race to finish the top four in Friday's clash as they fell to a 1-0 loss at Freiburg. The Foals have now won just one of their last four in the league, while Freiburg secured their first win since the league resumed last month. He may not have had a direct hand in the goal that won Freiburg the match, but Nicolas Hofler put in a solid defensive display on home turf. Indeed, the 30-year-old came away with the man of the match award with a WhoScored rating of 7.76 as he shielded the backline with aplomb, making three tackles and four interceptions to help seal the individual award. 

RB Leipzig 1-1 Paderborn - Timo Werner 

Christian Strohdiek rescued a point for basement boys Paderborn at 10-men RB Leipzig on Saturday, but the match marked Timo Werner's 10th man of the match display of the season. While the German couldn't fire the home side to victory, it wasn't for want of trying as he mustered four shots. Werner provided the assist for Patrik Schick's opening first half goal, that coming from one of four key passes, and Chelsea fans will have been impressed at what they saw from the 24-year-old as he landed a WhoScored rating of 7.71. 

Bayer Leverkusen 2-4 Bayern Munich - Leon Goretzka 

A match perhaps best-remembered for Thomas Muller reaching the 20-assist landmark, Bayern Munich took another huge step towards their eighth successive Bundesliga title as they showed impressive resolve to bounce back from going behind. Lucas Alario's goal in the opening 10 minutes marked the first time Bayern have been behind in a league match since December with Leon Goretzka vital in the turnaround. The midfielder provided the assist for Kingsley Coman to draw Bayern level before firing the Bavarian outfit ahead with just three of the first half to go. Those came from respective returns of one key pass and two shots and contributed towards the midfielder's WhoScored rating of 8.45. 

Eintracht Frankfurt 0-2 Mainz 05 - Daniel Brosinski 

Perhaps with one eye on their midweek DFB-Pokal meeting with Bayern Munich, Eintracht Frankfurt fell to a disappointing 2-0 loss at the hands of relegation threatened Mainz 05, with Daniel Brosinski vital from left-back. The 31-year-old provided the assist for Moussa Niakhate's opener on the stroke of half time, that coming from one of six key passes over the 90 minutes, while three interceptions and two aerial duels won aided the defender in a clean-sheet attaining display and to a WhoScored rating of 8.68. 

Fortuna Duesseldorf 2-2 Hoffenheim - Kevin Stoger 

Fortuna Duesseldorf will have been disappointed they couldn't capitalise on their numerical advantage after Benjamin Hubner's red card reduced Hoffenheim to 10-men in the opening exchanges in their 2-2 draw, yet the stalemate marked a commendable display from Kevin Stoger. The midfielder provided the assist for Rouwen Hennings' opening goal with just five minutes on the clock, that coming from one of two key passes in the home draw. The 26-year-old broke forward from deep impressively, too, as he completed three dribbles and was solid out of possession as he made two tackles and one interception to help yield a WhoScored rating of 7.69. 

Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Hertha Berlin - Emre Can 

If anyone can, Emre Can. As Borussia Dortmund huffed and puffed and struggled to break a rejuvenated Hertha Berlin down, Can cropped up with the winning goal on the hour mark. The 26-year-old has proven an inspired January capture from Juventus as he proved decisive on home turf, with one of his two shots hitting the back of the net. The German was unfazed by Hertha's attack as he made seven clearances and three interceptions, and remained composed in Dortmund's back three, returning a 95.2% pass success rate secure a WhoScored rating of 8.34.