2. Bundesliga: Thrilling encounter in Berlin ends all square between Hertha and Darmstadt

Hertha BSC and SV Darmstadt played out an enthralling 2-2 draw this afternoon in a pulsating encounter in the capital.

Hertha made the perfect start, taking the lead just two minutes in. Marten Winkler danced past his marker on the left before hanging up a cross to the back post, where the unmarked Fabian Reese arrived to volley past Marcel Schuhen for 1-0.

The hosts doubled their advantage 15 minutes later following a costly mistake from Matej Maglica. The defender played a loose pass deep inside his own half, allowing Julian Eitschberger to pounce, breeze past several Darmstadt defenders and coolly finish beyond Schuhen from inside the area as Hertha continued to fly.

While Darmstadt dominated possession and Hertha looked most dangerous on the counter, the visitors were handed a lifeline six minutes before the break. Pascal Klemens foolishly stuck out a leg to bring down Luca Marseiler inside the box, and Fraser Hornby duly sent Tjark Ernst the wrong way from the spot to score his fifth of the campaign and reduce the deficit to 2-1 at half-time.

The second half burst into life immediately, with chances at both ends as the game opened up after the restart. Darmstadt drew level just after the hour mark when Sergio López surged down the right flank and drilled a low cross into the six-yard box, allowing Hornby to tap home his second of the afternoon and make it 2-2.

Hertha’s task became significantly tougher eight minutes later when Dawid Kownacki was shown a straight red. The striker tracked Marseiler back into his own half before clipping him from behind to halt a counter-attack, a challenge the referee deemed worthy of dismissal, leaving the hosts under pressure for the final 20 minutes.

Darmstadt came closest to taking advantage when Isac Lidberg met a Fabian Nürnberger cross, but the league’s joint top scorer could only nod his header onto the crossbar, summing up a frustrating afternoon for the Swede. Despite their numerical advantage, Florian Kohfeldt’s side failed to find a winner as Hertha held firm.

It makes it an astounding fifth consecutive draw for Hertha, who will rue another two points dropped and a missed opportunity to close the gap to the top as they remain seventh. Darmstadt extend their unbeaten run to nine league games and end the weekend in third place.