‘Phantom’ goal fallout concerns Kiessling

SaturdayEintracht vs Leverkusen 4:30pmHoffenheim vs BayernHamburg SV vs GladbachNurnberg vs SC FreiburgHertha vs Schalke 04Frankfurt vs Wolfsburg 7:30pmSundayFC Augsburg vs Mainz 4:30pmBremen vs Hannover 6:30pmBERLIN. Bayer Leverkusen striker Stefan Kiessling is still dealing with the effects of the ‘phantom goal’ he scored against Hoffenheim earlier this month despite the German federation ruling against a replay of the encounter. Last season’s Bundesliga top scorer had to shut down his Facebook page on Wednesday to end continued verbal abuse by people who thought he should have told the referee the ball had gone in through the side netting in their 2-1 win at Hoffenheim. “There is a bit of concern because you do not know what else can happen and when it will finally stop,” Kiessling told Bild newspaper on Thursday. “There were moments when I cursed the goal and wished I could turn back the clock.” Kiessling’s 70th-minute header flew just wide of the post and hit the side netting but went through a hole and ended up in the goal. Referee Felix Brych awarded a goal after consulting his assistants, putting Leverkusen 2-0 ahead at the time and triggering an outcry over the mistake and the need for goalline technology in Germany, a tool already in use in other domestic and international competitions.