Seven goals in Mainz, six in Leipzig: the Bundesliga does what it does

If you only watch one league for entertainment value, the Bundesliga keeps making the case for itself. This weekend served up a 4-3, a 6-0 and a pair of five-goal games across the top flight, and that was just the highlights reel.

The game of the weekend was at Mainz, where Bayer Leverkusen came away 4-3 winners in a match that swung back and forth until the final whistle. Seven goals at the Mewa Arena, and a result that says as much about Leverkusen's nerve as their attack. Winning shootouts on the road is a habit that separates contenders from entertainers.

Mainz deserve credit for the contest they made of it. Three times they asked questions of the champions' defence and three times they found answers. But Leverkusen's quality in the final third was the difference, and for a side with ambitions on multiple fronts this season, wins like this are worth more than the three points alone.

RB Leipzig were even more ruthless, a 6-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt that stands as the round's widest margin anywhere in Europe's top leagues. Frankfurt are no pushovers, which makes the scoreline all the more striking. Six unanswered goals is the sort of afternoon that changes how a team is talked about, and for Leipzig it arrives at exactly the right time in their season.

The result also lands a psychological blow in the chase for the Champions League places. Frankfurt will have to sit with a 6-0 defeat for two weeks, and how a squad responds to a humiliation like that often tells you more than the defeat itself.

The most consequential result for the top of the table might be the draw. Bayern Munich were held 2-2 at Augsburg, points dropped in a Bavarian derby they will feel come spring. For all their dominance of possession and territory, Bayern could not put the game away, and Augsburg's reward for stubborn resistance is a point that will feel like a win.

Dropped points for Bayern are always news, but they carry extra weight when the chasing pack win. Leverkusen's shootout victory and Leipzig's demolition both close the gap psychologically even when the arithmetic stays tight.

Stuttgart won 2-0 at Paderborn, a controlled away performance from a side quietly assembling a strong season away from home. Hamburg edged a five-goal game at Hoffenheim 3-2, a result that continues their encouraging return to top-flight relevance, while Hoffenheim's defensive fragility cost them again in a game they competed hard in.

FC Koln beat Borussia Monchengladbach 2-1 in the Rhine derby, which for the home support is a result worth more than any three points on offer this weekend. Derby wins have a way of lifting an entire season, and this one was fought for rather than gifted.

Elsewhere, Union Berlin edged SV Elversberg 1-0 in the kind of tight, tactical contest Union have made their signature, and Freiburg beat Schalke 2-1 to keep themselves in touch with the European places.

Twenty-nine goals across eight games tells its own story. The Bundesliga's commitment to open, ambitious football is not new, but weekends like this remind you why neutrals keep tuning in. For the neutrals it was a feast. For Bayern, it was a warning.