VfL Wolfsburg's attempts to close the gap on the UEFA Champions League places were dealt a blow after a narrow defeat at the hands of Eintracht Frankfurt.
Wolfsburg take advantage of dominance in first half
Wolfsburg controlled the possession in the early stages and had a penalty shout in the first seven minutes. Julian Draxler cut in from the left wing and was upended by Stefan Aigner though Knut Kircher waved away the penalty claims.
Draxler carried on creating chances for the away side and the German international this time whipped in a superb cross from the left but it was expertly parried away by Lukas Hradecky. Hradecky was then called on again just moments later as Daniel Caligiuri tried a shot from just inside the box only for the Finn to pull off an excellent save.
Brazillian international Dante finally opened the scoring in the 24th minute after a great delivery from Ricardo Rodriguez. Wolfsburg won themselves a free kick down the right flank, Rodriguez curled in a cracking ball to the back post which was met by Dante to put the the Wolves in front.
Eintracht Frankfurt couldn't handle the potency of Wolfsburg and they nearly went 2-0 thanks to Max Kruse but his low effort after a flowing counter attack was saved by the excellent Hradecky. As halftime approached Daniel Caligiuri should have put the game to bed. Rodriguez set the ball on a tee for his team mate but the midfielder put the ball well wide when he should have done better.
Frankfurt win after a smash and grab second half
Unexpectedly, Frankfurt started the second half on the front foot and had a penalty shout turned down early on. Vieirinha had his arms in the air but the ball hit the side of his body as he jumped for the ball. Frankfurt's chances of winning a penalty were in vain as the referee continued play. As Frankfurt dominated the second half they equalised through Alexander Meier. Stefan Aigner played a ball into the feet of Meier, who swiveled and put the ball into the back of the net from 11 yards out.
The home side then went 2-1 ahead thanks to Meier's second goal. Aigner again was the architect as he produced a mazy run in the box. He then passed the ball to the feet of Meier and the veteran forward powered home from inside the box. Wolfsburg were back level again as they equalised in the 79th minute through André Schürrle. Former Frankfurt man, Sebastian Jung, crossed in from the wings and Schürrle swept the ball into the goal past the helpless Hradecky.
In the last minute Wolfsburg had the chance to steal a victory through Veirinha, but his effort was cleared off the line by Makoto Hasebe. As the game came to an end, drama ensued. Meier won the game with the last touch of the match to complete his hat-trick. The big German poked the ball into the net after a mix-up in the Wolfsburg area to seal a memorable start to 2016 for the Eagles.