Andrej Kramarić had been waiting for his first goal of the season, and he got it in style. Hoffenheim beat Lyon 3-0 at home in the UEFA Europa League on the third matchday, with Kramarić scoring in first-half stoppage time before adding two assists. One day after Christian Ilzer's 49th birthday, the result gave 1899 Hoffenheim a much-needed lift.

Kramarić's decisive night

Kramarić's influence went far beyond the goal. He finished the game with 1 goal and 2 assists, then finished with the kind of numbers that explain why Hoffenheim were able to pull away from Lyon after a tight opening spell. He set up Adam Daghim and Adam Hložek, and his 6 shots and 4 key passes showed how often he was involved in the final third.

The goal came in the 45+4th minute, a clean reward for a player who had not found the net yet this season. In Europe, though, he now has 3 appearances, 1 goal and 2 assists, which is a far better return than Hoffenheim had been getting from their attack in the opening weeks.

Hoffenheim's European reset

The win mattered for the table as well as the mood. Hoffenheim had lost their previous two Europa League matches, against OFI Crete and Beşiktaş, and they started the night 31st in the standings with 0 points from 2 matches. SPORT1 reported that, after this result, reaching the knockout round is once again possible.

The performance was not built on one burst alone. Hoffenheim went close early through Alexander Prass, whose low shot in the 13th minute forced a save, and Robin Hranáč hit the crossbar in the 20th minute. They also did the basics well in front of 21,029 fans, then let Kramarić decide the game when the chances opened up.

The task now is to back it up in their next Europa League match, with the result against Lyon giving them a platform they badly needed.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →