Hertha Berlin continue Bundesliga ascent thanks to Kalou's hat trick
FRANKFURT, Germany --
Salomon Kalou scored his first Bundesliga hat trick as Hertha Berlin won 3-1 in Hannover on Friday.
Playing with a head bandage in Berlin's white-and-blue colors because of a previous injury, Kalou scored in the 33rd, 60th and then converted a penalty in the 88th as his team outplayed the home side. Hiroshi Kiyotake also scored from the spot for Hannover in the 70th.
The win provisionally took Berlin to fourth place, while Hannover stayed 14th.
Kalou's first two goals came as a result of clinical finishing from counterattacks. The first came after a pass from Genki Haraguchi, with Kalou shaking off two defenders and shooting through the legs of one of them to beat goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler. On the second, Vladimir Darida sent Kalou racing down the field with a perfectly timed long through ball and the striker easily drove past Zieler.
Zieler got his fingers on Kalou's penalty but could not stop the powerful shot.
''Three goals in the Bundesliga is an exceptional moment,'' Berlin coach Pal Dardai said of Kalou. ''But the whole team played well. We were very well organized. Respect. The first half was especially good.''
