Bundesliga: Late own goal sees Hannover past Frankfurt

Hannover needed a late own goal from Alexander Madlung to see off Eintracht Frankfurt 1-0 at the Niedersachsenstadion and move into the top six of the Bundesliga on Saturday night.

Despite dominating possession from the outset, Hannover were unable to make their domination count.

Jimmy Briand was unfortunate to see his goal disallowed in the first half, but it did not matter in the end as Madlung obliged with an own-goal which gifted the Reds their second straight 1-0 win.

Hannover though they had crowned a bright start to the game in which they had dominated possession when Briand headed in at the far post, but the goal was not given.

The referee felt the French forward had fouled his marker as he rose to head the ball in, although replays suggested it was a harsh decision.

Hannover did not let that get them down, though, and continued to control affairs, albeit without creating any chances of note.

Frankfurt improved in the second half and Sonny Kittel's shot from an angle was a warning which was deflected behind by Ron-Robert Zieler.

There were no further warnings to come from the Eagles, though, as Hannover continued to hold the ball among their ranks and look for gaps to exploit.

One of them came in the 88th minute with Hiroshi Kiyotake, their match-winner in Dortmund a week ago, curling in a free-kick which was met by Marcelo.

His header was helped on its way in by Madlung's attempt to clear the ball, and Hannover were ultimately able to celebrate a win which did not seem like it would come.