Bundesliga comeback kids make mark on MD 14

It's not known whether Augsburg forward Alexander Esswein is a Twain fan. But the man who scored the last-minute winner that took one of the Bundesliga's smallest clubs into the top three would surely appreciate the famous quote by the American humorist.

24-year-old Esswein has seen more than his fair share of ups-and-downs-and-ups in his career. A member of Germany's national youth teams at all age levels, the native of Worms made his first-division debut for former champions Wolfsburg in 2009 at the age of 19. After a promising start on the surface, he spent two seasons playing mostly for the Wolves' developmental squads before being shipped to third-division Dynamo Dresden.

He blossomed in Eastern Germany and at the lower level, scored 17 goals in the 2010-11 season. That earned him a ticket back to the big leagues with Nuremberg in 2012, but again his career stalled. Esswein only scored six goals in 58 matches for the Bavarians and moved on to Augsburg last season following Nuremburg's relegation.

Saturday's goal was Esswein's first for Augsburg and may earn him more frequent looks from head coach Markus Weinzierl.

Perisic turns provider

The man of the match in Wolfsburg's 3-1 win in Hannover was without question Ivan Perisic. The Croat provided the assists for all of the Wolves' goals, revelling in his new role as a winger.

Borussia Dortmund signed the forward in 2011, in part to replace departed striker Lucas Barrios. But while Dortmund went on to defend their domestic title that year, the Croatian international never really established himself in the starting line up.

After a tally of nine goals in 42 matches across two seasons, Dortmund's bosses pulled the plug and shipped him to Wolfsburg. There, Perisic has been marginally more successful, scoring 15 times in 51 matches and coming to the fore in the last few months on the left-side of the attack.

On Saturday, the 25-year-old showed how valuable he can be in knitting a team's attack together and playing a crucial hand in Wolfsburg's win on the road.

Choupo finds the magic formula

Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting, gifted with the size and speed to be one of the best in the league, never fully realized his potential at his previous clubs in Hamburg, Nuremberg and Mainz, despite his 10 goals last season that drew comparisons to French legend Thierry Henry.

Having moved to Schalke this season, to add depth rather than to play as a starter, Choupo-Moting slowly found his edge before hitting a five-match fallow period with no goals or assists, which had Schalke fans worrying that the 25-year-old Cameroonian German would offer little competition to Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

The last three matches, however, have thoroughly dispelled those worries. The striker has contributed five goals and three assists, including a hat trick and an assist in Schalke's demolition of Stuttgart.

That return has taken him to the top of the club's scorers chart ahead of teammate Huntelaar, with whom he is now forging a devastating front-line partnership under new head coach Roberto di Matteo.