Bayern's chief title rivals both beaten

Bayern Munich's Bundesliga title hopes received an unexpected boost yesterday as second-placed Schalke 04 were beaten 2-0 at Kaiserslautern and third-placed VfB Stuttgart lost 4-2 at home to FC Nuremberg.

With Bayern out of action until today, a point would have been enough to take Schalke top but second-half goals from Ioannis Amanatidis and Stefan Blank gave Kaiserslautern a deserved victory.

Stuttgart clawed their way back from 2-0 down to level at 2-2 against Nuremberg but Marek Mintal and Markus Schroth scored late on to give them a deserved win.

Bayern can move three points clear of Schalke, and six ahead of Stuttgart, if they win today's game against Hertha Berlin.

Bayern lead the standings with 37 points, still ahead of Schalke on goal difference and with a game in hand.

Stuttgart are third on 34, with Bayer Leverkusen moving to fourth on 32 points after they won 4-0 at home to VfL Bochum.

VfL Wolfsburg, who led the league for long periods over the first half of the season, slipped to sixth with a 1-0 defeat away to Freiburg, who climbed off the bottom.

Stuttgart were without their suspended captain Zvonimir Soldo against Nuremberg and they looked ill at ease as a result.

Nuremberg took the lead with their first chance in the sixth minute, when Markus Daun's astute reverse pass set up Sven Mueller to shoot low across the keeper and in at the far post. Within five minutes the visitors had doubled their lead, with Marek Mintal crossing from the right for Markus Schroth to head in unmarked.

Fernando Meira gave Stuttgart hope when he controlled a corner from the right and lashed in and a memorable comeback looked to be on when Imre Szabics nipped in at the near post to equalise with 20 minutes still to go.

But Mintal put Nuremberg back ahead in the 83rd minute when he took advantage of a hesitant Stuttgart defence to clip in his 14th goal of the season and Schroth grabbed his second of the game to settle matters two minutes later.

"Our future depends on us conceding fewer goals," Stuttgart coach Matthias Sammer told reporters.

"We attacked and fought hard but we go home with nothing."