Hoffenheim thrash Ligue 1 leaders Lyon 3-0 to earn first Europa League points

Hoffenheim end Lyon’s perfect start in style

Hoffenheim followed their first away Bundesliga win with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Lyon in the Europa League. Christian Ilzer’s side registered their first points of the competition by ending the perfect start of the Ligue 1 leaders.

Andrej Kramarić celebrates for Hoffenheim against Lyon

Fresh from their vital Bundesliga win at Borussia Mönchengladbach, TSG Hoffenheim had the best chances of the game in the first half an hour. Alexander Prass and Robin Hranac came the closest to breaking the deadlock, but Dominik Greif was in good form in Lyon’s goal.

The 29-year-old goalkeeper also needed a lengthy medical treatment before his teammate Steeve Kango had to come off with an injury on his first appearance of the season, with those incidents leading to eight minutes of injury-time.

Kramarić breaks resistance before half-time

Hoffenheim’s all-time top-scorer Andrej Kramarić broke OL’s resistance before the half-time whistle. The 35-year-old scored his first goal of the competition since the 2020/21 season as Lyon failed to clear their lines from a long throw-in.

Oliver Baumann also contributed to their lead with decent saves from Keito Nakamura and Kail Boudache attempts earlier in the half.

Second-half rout sealed by Kramarić assists

Paulo Fonseca made two more substitutions at the break with the English midfielder Tyler Morton and ex-Mainz defender Moussa Niakhaté introduced. However, they conceded the second goal inside the first five minutes.

Kramarić turned provider as Adam Daghim scored his first European goal for Hoffenheim with a composed finish. Substitute Adam Hložek had the best chance for the hosts to extend their lead before succeeding in doing so from yet another assist by the Croat international Kramarić.

Hoffenheim will host fellow Europa League side Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday before facing a struggling Holstein Kiel side in the second round of the DFB-Pokal. Their next European fixture will be away at reigning Conference League winners Crystal Palace.