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Van Buyten lifts Bayern in Bavarian derby

  • Story Highlights
  • Bayern Munich close to within two points of Bundesliga's top two teams
  • Daniel van Buyten heads late goal against Bavarian rivals Nuremberg in 2-1 win
  • Bayern third on goal difference ahead of Hoffenheim and Mainz, who both win
  • Cologne move off bottom of table with first victory, winning 2-0 at Stuttgart
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(CNN) -- Bayern Munich closed to within two points of Bundesliga leaders Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen with a 2-1 victory at home to Bavarian rivals Nuremberg on Saturday.

Belgian defender Daniel Van Buyten celebrates his winning goal for Bayern Munich.

Belgian defender Daniel Van Buyten celebrates his winning goal for Bayern Munich.

Daniel Van Buyten's 82nd-minute winner left Bayern on 13 points behind the two top teams, who are in action on Sunday, and above Hoffenheim and Mainz on goal difference.

Mainz won 3-2 away to Bochum on Saturday, while Hoffenheim scored three late goals to snatch a 4-2 victory at Borussia Moenchengladbach.

They moved above Schalke, who lost 2-1 to coach Felix Magath's former team, defending champions Wolfsburg, on Friday night.

Bayern broke into the top three for the first time this season despite again starting with France star Franck Ribery on the substitutes' bench, where he was joined by Miroslav Klose as young striker Thomas Muller was given the chance to add to his run of four goals in two games.

Nuremberg fielded a defensive line-up, but striker Mario Gomez still managed to hit the crossbar for Bayern before Ivica Olic broke the deadlock in the 55th minute.

The Croatia forward scored his second goal of the season after being fed in the penalty area by Muller, who was earlier denied one-on-one by goalkeeper Raphael Schafer.

The visitors shocked the 69,000-strong crowd in the 73rd minute when Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting equalized after good work by 18-year-old midfielder Ilkay Gundogan.

However, Belgian defender Van Buyten followed up his midweek Champions League goal in the win over Maccabi Haifa by heading Arjen Robben's right-wing cross into the far corner to help launch the city's Oktoberfest in fine style.

Hoffenheim moved into fourth place on 11 points as Senegalese striker Demba Ba scored in the first minute of injury-time to seal victory over Moenchengladbach.

Brazilian midfielder Maicosuel had equalized in the 86th minute and then Nigerian forward Chinedu Obasi put the visitors ahead three minutes later.

The hosts had led 2-0 after 17 minutes through Juan Arango and Roberto Colautti, but Sejad Salihovic's free-kick beat goalkeeper Logan Bailly from an impossibly tight angle four minutes later to reduce the deficit.

Mainz earned victory at Bochum thanks to a second-half double from 18-year-old striker Andre Schuerle.

Midfielder Mimoun Azaouagh put the home side ahead after only seven minutes and striker Diego Fernando Klimowicz doubled the lead at the end of first-half regulation time -- but Andreas Ivanschitz reduced the deficit before the whistle blew for the interval.

Schuerle netted in the 52nd and 71st minutes to give Mainz a third win from six league outings.

Cologne moved off the bottom of the table with their first victory, winning 2-0 at Stuttgart with a 25th-minute header from Sebastian Freis before goalkeeper Jens Lehmann's 89th-minute error let in striker Manasseh Ishiaku.

In Saturday's other game, Hannover were held 1-1 at home by Borussia Dortmund as Didier Ya Konan scored three minutes after halftime for the hosts to cancel out Nuri Sahin's goal just before the break.

On Sunday, Hamburg travel to Eintracht Frankfurt, Leverkusen host Werder Bremen and bottom club Hertha Berlin are at home to Freiburg.

On Friday, striker Edin Dzeko scored twice to haunt his former mentor Magath as champions Wolfsburg moved onto nine points with a third win of the Bundesliga season.

The Bosnian broke the deadlock in the 55th minute with a header from Sascha Riether's cross, but Benedikt Howedes leveled with a header of his own 10 minutes from time from Levan Kenia's corner.

However, Dzeko relieved the pressure on coach Armin Veh a minute later to end a run of three defeats as he fired home from eight yards after being set up by substitute Makoto Hasebe.

Schalke substitute Kevin Kuranyi had a late header blocked on the line by goalkeeper Andre Lenz, filling in for the suspended Diego Benaglio.

All About FC BayernNurembergHamburg SVStuttgartCologneBV Borussia DortmundMainzBochumWolfsburgFC Schalke 04BundesligaGermanyEuropean Football

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