Bundesliga strugglers Hoffenheim have appointed Pellegrino Matarazzo as their new head coach.

Hoffenheim have taken two points from their past nine games and are just three points above Stuttgart in the relegation play-off place.

After parting company with Andre Breitenreiter on Monday, Hoffenheim have turned to American-born Matarazzo, who was sacked by Stuttgart four months ago.

Matarazzo previously spent two and a half years at Rhein-Neckar-Arena working as under-17 coach and then assistant coach of the first team.

"As I've been living in the region since 2017, I've witnessed TSG's development first-hand even after my exit," Matarazzo said after his appointment was confirmed on Wednesday.

"The situation is undoubtedly demanding. I'm convinced of the team's quality and will approach the task full of verve and with great confidence. 

"TSG is synonymous with offensive, courageous and fresh football. I want to quickly get the team back to playing the kind of football that has set them apart for many years."

Matarazzo will oversee his first training session on Wednesday and will be in the dugout for the first time as head coach for Saturday's home match against Bayer Leverkusen.

Stuttgart coach Pellegrino Matarazzo described his feelings of "ecstasy" after his side's Bundesliga survival was secured with a last-gasp 2-1 final-day win over Cologne.

VfB were destined for a relegation play-off entering injury time on Saturday with the scoreline locked at 1-1, despite rivals Hertha Berlin trailing at Borussia Dortmund.

Stuttgart needed only one goal to be sure of Bundesliga safety and, with goalkeeper Florian Muller – whose error had put them in such peril – up for a corner, it belatedly arrived.

Wataru Endo headed the 92nd-minute winner that sparked scenes of mass celebration and condemned Hertha to the play-off – not that Matarazzo knew the identity of his hero amid the carnage.

The coach raced onto the pitch along with his substitutes – and Stuttgart mascot Fritzle, a giant, fluffy crocodile.

"I don't even remember who scored the goal," Matarazzo told Sky Sport. "I don't remember what happened.

"Suddenly, I only see that Fritzle is lying on me. It was a nice moment for all players, for all the fans and everyone part of the club."

Stuttgart were grateful to Dortmund for their role in the escape, with Hertha having led until past the hour mark at the Westfalenstadion, when the departing Erling Haaland equalised.

"The boys certainly noticed the result," Matarazzo said. "With every goal Dortmund scored, the players had more courage.

"It was an absolute goal of will at the end. I'm very happy for the boys."

He added: "I’ve got a headache after all that shouting and cheering. That was ecstasy, a great moment, outstanding. I'm so happy for the lads. You never forget a moment like today."

Alphonso Davies' early red card "woke up" Bayern Munich and set them on their way to claiming a 4-0 victory over Stuttgart despite their numerical disadvantage, Robert Lewandowski has declared.

The Bundesliga champions had been on the back foot even prior to losing their left-back in the 12th minute for a poor challenge on Wataru Endo.

But they responded brilliantly, taking the lead through hat-trick hero Lewandowski before Serge Gnabry also scored as they built a four-goal lead by half-time.

Speaking after the game, the Poland star shared his belief that, rather than hurt Bayern, the dismissal actually served to bring them to life.

He said: "We played really well after the red card. That woke us up. Before that, we didn't play so perfectly.

"After that, it was a challenge for us to create chances and score goals. We wanted to keep playing forward after the first goal and try to add another one."

Bayern coach Hansi Flick was understandably full of praise for the manner in which his players responded to that setback.

The German also had no complaints about the decision to dismiss his player.

"I have to give my team a huge compliment," he enthused.

"After the dismissal, which was justified, they worked well on the defensive, made the spaces very, very tight as a team and did very well in possession of the ball, especially in the first half.

"The way we created the chances was simply outstanding. We had to change the defence today and were very compact.

"We kept the clean sheet and got the three points – that was our goal and thus a successful game day for us."

As for Stuttgart boss Pellegrino Matarazzo, he felt the sending-off only ended up taking away the visitors' positive early momentum.

He said: "We got into the game well, you can even say that we were dominant.

"We played well and should have taken the lead shortly after the red card. Then something happened mentally: either that we had pressure to win or we thought we had less pressure now.

"We paid in the first half and I hope we can do better next time."