Hertha Berlin missed the chance to go third in the Bundesliga on Sunday when the video assistant referee (VAR) stepped in to deny them a late penalty in a 1-1 draw at home to Freiburg.

Hertha playmaker Ondrej Duda fired home his sixth league goal of the season only for Freiburg to equalise through defender Robin Koch before the break.

The draw leaves Hertha fifth in the table with Bayern Munich third after their 3-1 win at Wolfsburg on Saturday with Borussia Dortmund top after their 4-0 hammering of Stuttgart.

There was late drama at Berlin's Olympic Stadium when Hertha were awarded a penalty two minutes from time.

Berlin midfielder Palko Dardai went down in the area after challenging Freiburg defender Manuel Gulde, but replays showed the Hertha player instigated the fall.

Referee Benjamin Cortus rightly reversed his decision to award a spot-kick, much to the annoyance of the home fans in the 48,000-strong crowd.

Hertha took the lead when Duda scored with just seven minutes gone.

Norway midfielder Per Skjelbred picked out the attacking midfielder and Slovakian star Duda fired home from a tight angle.

However, Freiburg have a reputation for fighting back and Christian Streich's youthful side equalised before half-time.

When striker Roland Sallai lost the ball in the penalty area, Koch reacted fastest to hammer his shot into the net on 36 minutes with Hertha goalkeeper Rune Jarstein powerless to save the shot.

Hertha had a string of second-half chances with ex-Chelsea striker Salomon Kalou going close before the VAR stepped in to deny Berlin the late penalty.