From correspondents in Europe, 01:01 PM IST

A Patrick Helmes hat-trick helped Bayer Leverkusen secure a convincing 4-0 victory against Hanover 96 in a Bundesliga match.

The result Friday saw high-flying Leverkusen move into second place in the table behind SV Hamburg, who are away to Wolfsburg Sunday.

German international Helmes, who has just extended his contract by a year to 2013, set up the first goal for fellow international Simon Rolfes in the 5th minute.

A near capacity crowd of 22,500 saw Helmes score Leverkusen's second himself in the 19th minute and then add two more after the break.

Hanover manager Christian Hochstaetter was angry with his side. 'There was a class difference between the two teams. You can't play football like that. I pitied our goalkeeper, who could do nothing about the goals.'

(Staff Writer, © IANS)