Kevin Volland scored the only goal of the game as unbeaten Hoffenheim reached second in the Bundesliga with a 1-0 victory over SC Paderborn on Saturday afternoon.
The win could have been far more comfortable had Sebastian Rudy not struck the post with a penalty in the fifth minute, after Volland was brought down by Daniel Bruckner in the box.
Paderborn matched the hosts for long spells of the first half, and went close to taking the lead when Suleyman Koc fired just over the crossbar from the edge of the box.
Eugen Polanski and Roberto Firmino linked up just before the break to create an opening for the latter, whose powerful strike flew inches wide of the bottom corner.
Lukas Kruse was forced into action early in the second half to keep Paderborn on level terms as he sprinted off his line to block Firmino's goal-bound effort.
The winning goal arrived 17 minutes from time as Volland timed his run perfectly to collect a pass from Andreas Beck before calmly slotting home.
Paderborn's challenge faded late on as Hoffenheim finished strongly to move within three points of leaders Bayern Munich.
Callum Mulvihill
