Paderborn beat Hoffenheim as Tigges decides it from the bench

SC Paderborn 07 got their first win of the season with a 3-1 defeat of 1899 Hoffenheim on Matchday 4, and Steffen Tigges was the decisive figure after half-time. He came on for Marvin Pieringer at the break, scored Paderborn's third goal in the 69th minute from Jonah Sticker's cross, and left the hosts with a lead Hoffenheim could not close.

Tigges' impact after half-time

Tigges did not just finish the move. He held the ball up well in the build-up, then attacked Sticker's delivery with the sort of timing Paderborn needed once the game tightened up. His 7.61 rating was the highest on the pitch, and it matched what the eye test suggested: he changed the temperature of the match as soon as he came on.

The substitute also had 3 shots and scored once, a tidy return from a second-half cameo that gave SC Paderborn 07 the cushion they were chasing. Stefano Marino, Santiago Castaneda, Adam Daghim and Laurin Curda were among the other names in the line-up, but this was Tigges' game.

Hoffenheim's pressure and Paderborn's finish

Bundesliga.com's match report said Hoffenheim started the second half the better side and got their reward on the 50-minute mark, then continued to press after the equaliser. The visitors also hit the post through Vladimír Coufal on 23 minutes, while Bambasé Conté later hit the crossbar and the post.

The underlying numbers leaned toward Hoffenheim, who posted 1.95 xG to Paderborn's 0.89, but the scoreline still finished 3-1. Ralf Kettemann fielded an unchanged starting XI for the third time in four league matches, yet the change that mattered came from the bench: Tigges turned one cross into the goal that settled it.