Dortmund loses out in six-goal thriller
Dan-Axel Zagadou scored and then saw red as Borussia Dortmund failed to win for the third Bundesliga game running at Hannover.
Borussia Dortmund was reduced to 10 men as its grip on top spot in the Bundesliga weakened in a thrilling 4-2 reverse at Hannover.
Dortmund was defeated in a hectic contest after Dan-Axel Zagadou was shown a straight red card for a trip on Jonathas, and reigning champion Bayern Munich replaced Peter Bosz's men at the summit after a 2-0 win against RB Leipzig.
Jonathas broke the deadlock from the penalty spot and then turned provider for Ihlas Bebou to restore the hosts' lead after Zagadou hit back with his first Bundesliga goal.
Andriy Yarmolenko struck a brilliant second equaliser, but Felix Kraus converted the free-kick that was awarded after Zagadou's dismissal and Bebou wrapped up the points with four minutes remaining.
After taking 19 points from their first seven games of the league season, Dortmund has now lost two and drawn one of its past three fixtures to open the door for a rejuvenated Bayern.
Christian Pulisic and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang both recovered from injury concerns to start, but BVB was dealt a major blow in the 20th minute as the hosts opened the scoring.
Roman Burki upended Klaus as he stretched for the ball in the area and, after referee Patrick Ittrich used the video assistant referee, Jonathas tucked away the penalty.
Dortmund's response was strong, however, and the equaliser soon followed from the unlikely source of Zagadou, who volleyed beyond Philipp Tschauner as Hannover scrambled to clear a right-wing corner.
Bosz's men tore forward in search of a second and Yarmolenko should have supplied it, somehow blazing high and wide after Pulisic, who was a menace on the left, raced away from the bumbling Salif Sane.
A thrilling first half continued in its unpredictable vein, though, and Bebou restored Hannover's lead with a cool finish at the end of a lightning counter-attack.
There was again a Dortmund riposte when Sane met an out-swinging cross with a tame header and Yarmolenko positioned himself beneath the dropping ball to send an effort arrowing into the bottom-right corner.
But the visitors' momentum was catastrophically disrupted once more as Zagadou tripped Jonathas and was duly dismissed, before Kraus exquisitely curled the resultant set-piece home.
Only a fine Tschauner stop kept Pulisic from netting another equaliser and Hannover could have widened the advantage as Bebou led a break and slipped in Kraus to shoot straight at Burki.
Dortmund's chief tormentor Bebou added to his tally when he streaked away again and lashed a finish inside the left-hand post.
Although Burki denied Hannover a fifth by keeping out Martin Harnik's late overhead kick, the hosts had already done enough to clinch an impressive win.
