Ten-man Hamburg SV moved to within four points of the top at the start of the winter break with a 2-1 victory over bitter northern rivals Werder Bremen on Sunday.
Hamburg's Joris Mathijsen grabbed the lead on nine minutes, and Marcell Jansen doubled it in the 36th, four minutes after defender Jerome Boateng was sent off for a foul on Marko Marin. Naldo pulled one back for Bremen in stoppage time.
The win lifted Hamburg into fourth place on 31 points with Bayer Leverkusen ending the first half of the season as leaders on 35.
Schalke 04 stayed in second, a point off the pace while Bayern Munich crushed Hertha Berlin 5-2 on Saturday to remain in third on 33. The season resumes on January 15.
