Hannover 96 and Karlsruher SC played out a 2:2 draw in the fourth round of the 2. Bundesliga at the Heinz von Heyden Arena on Friday evening. The result leaves Hannover third from bottom on three points while Karlsruhe sit eighth with four.
Hannover took the lead in the twenty-sixth minute through Lars Gindorf, only to see Shio Fukuda equalise for the visitors two minutes later. Marcel Hartel restored his side's advantage in the thirty-eighth minute before Rafael Pinto Pedrosa found an equaliser in the eighty-fifth.
The match was far from clean. Hannover collected four yellow cards through Stefán Teitur Thórdarson, Bastian Allgeier, Waniss Taibi and Boris Tomiak, while Noel Eichinger and Christoph Kobald were booked for Karlsruher SC.
Hannover dominated possession at 52 per cent and registered 114 attacks, yet their shot accuracy sat at fifty per cent with six efforts on target. Karlsruher SC managed fewer attacks at 85 but created more big chances, recording four compared to two, and posted a higher expected goals figure of 1.98.
The visitors made five substitutions in the final quarter, bringing on Louey Ben Farhat, Deniz Ofli, Kevin Wiethaup, Waniss Taibi and Virgil Ghiță. Rafael Pinto Pedrosa, who scored the late equaliser, was also replaced before the final whistle.
For Hannover, the draw extends a run that includes a 1:0 win over Darmstadt 98 and a heavy 9:1 victory against Gemellingens. Karlsruhe's recent form shows a 2:1 victory over Preußen Münster and a goalless draw with Kaiserslautern.
