Berlin (AFP) – Goalkeeper Rune Jarstein was sent off as Hertha Berlin continued to sputter in the Bundesliga, losing 4-0 at Augsburg on Sunday.
Hertha lost a fifth straight game and slid below Augsburg after Philipp Max, Sergio Cordova, Andre Hahn and Florian Niederlechner scored for the hosts. Hertha are just a point above the relegation zone.
Left-back Max opened the scoring for the Bavarians in the 18th minute with a free-kick but the turning point came 10 minutes later.
Jarstein earned a red card with a studs-up challenge on Niederlechner. Cordova claimed the home side’s second in the process.
Substitute Hahn added a third in the 52nd minute with a superb curling strike from the edge of the box. Niederlechner bagged his side’s fourth in the 79th minute.
Earlier on Sunday, Borussia Dortmund’s squad were booed and jeered when they appeared at the side’s annual general meeting, with fans screaming “shame on you”.
Coach Lucien Favre is under pressure as Dortmund, expected to challenge for the title after an ambitious off-season recruitment drive, languish in sixth after a draw to lowly Paderborn on Friday.
On Saturday managerless Bayern Munich closed the gap at the top of the table to just a point with a 4-0 romp at Fortuna Duesseldorf as leaders Borussia Moenchengladbach suffered a shock 2-0 loss at Union Berlin.
In Sunday’s late game, struggling Mainz head to Hoffenheim who can move fourth with a sixth straight win.
