Salomon Kalou has scored a hat-trick as Hertha Berlin secured a comfortable 3-1 win over Hannover in the Bundesliga.
The visitors dominated possession early on, with Vladimir Darida and Genki Haraguchi both getting shots away in the early stages of the match, but they were unable to find the back of the net.
The pair linked up again midway through the first half, with Haraguchi playing the ball though for Darida, but his low finish was straight at the keeper.
The breakthrough came just after the half-hour mark as Haraguchi made another run forward picking out Kalou with a through-ball, leaving the striker to fire in from close range.
Marvin Plattenhardt had a chance to double Hertha's lead shortly before the break as he curled a free kick in, but the powerful effort was just high, while Rune Jarstein was called into action in the Berlin goal moments later as Hiroshi Kiyotake attempting to find an equaliser.
The visitors continued to dominate proceedings at the start of the second half, as Haraguchi charged forward with Plattenhardt in support, but Mitichell Weiser could not make the most of the final ball.
There was a rare chance for the home side soon after as Hiroki Sakai picked out Kiyotake, but his hurried finish was sliced high of the crossbar.
The miss proved costly as Hertha doubled their advantage down the other end soon after, with Kalou beating Ron-Robert Zieler for a second time, coolly tapping the ball in from a Darida delivery.
Hannover continued to shot more intent down the other end, as Artur Sobiech made a blistering run forward before seeing his shot blocked, leaving Kalou to charge straight back down the other end, setting up Haraguchi for a high effort.
The home side were gifted a way back into the match though as Plattenhardt brought down Uffe Bech in the penalty area, allowing Kiyotake to power the ball in from the penalty spot.
The visitors had a spot kick of their own before full time though as Marcelo was judged to have shoved Mitchell Weiser, allowing Kalou to complete the hat-trick and put the win beyond doubt with a late penalty.
The result moves Hertha up to fourth in the Bundesliga table, while Hannover sit 14th, just a point clear of the bottom three.
Sian Cowper
