BERLIN, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- Leipzig recorded their fifth victory in a row after smoothing the way for the 4-1 win over hapless Cologne at the 12th round in Bundesliga on Saturday.

The "Bulls" have defended their second place in the standings as Emil Forsberg's brace helped Leipzig ease past Cologne, who suffered their ninth defeat from 12 games.

From the kickoff, Cologne kept all their men behind the ball and made Leipzig's life difficult in the opening stages.

As the match progressed, Leipzig gained momentum and broke the deadlock as Jonas Hector lost the ball to Christoper Nkunku, who assisted Werner with the opener in the 22nd minute.

Hosts Leipzig added another goal 10 minutes later when Forsberg made no mistake to convert a penalty.

To make things worse for Cologne, Leipzig tripled the lead moments later after Laimer hammered the ball into the roof of the net with 37 minutes played.

Cologne showed a vital sign two minutes later as Rafael Czichos headed home Birger Verstraete's corner to reduce the arrears out of the blue.

Leipzig remained unfazed and controlled the proceedings on the green but neither Werner nor Laimer were able to extend the lead at the hour mark.

The hosts however rounded off their win with the second goal from Forsberg, whose direct free kick found the net with 10 minutes to play.

"Leipzig is in good shape right now and we weren't able to put up some resistance in the first half. We couldn't hold the pace," Cologne's new coach Markus Gisdol said.

"My team played very well and we kept it bowling even though they pulled one back. I think we secured a deserved win," Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann said.

With the 7th win of the season, Leipzig remain on the second place whereas Cologne stay on the 17th position, which is a direct relegation spot.

The following fixtures conclude the 12th round on Sunday: Augsburg encounter Hertha Berlin, and Hoffenheim host Mainz.