Impressive Bayern beats Frankfurt 4-0 to stay eight points clear of Leverkusen in Bundesliga
Impressive Bayern beats Frankfurt 4-0 to stay eight points clear of Leverkusen in Bundesliga
BERLIN (AP) — Bayern Munich substitute Serge Gnabry grabbed a late goal to cap a 4-0 win over third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt that consolidated the Bavarian powerhouse’s Bundesliga lead on Sunday.
Gnabry fired the ball through Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp’s legs in the second minute of stoppage time, almost 10 minutes after Jamal Musiala ran past a host of defenders and got a fortunate bounce of the ball before firing it past Trapp for Bayern’s third goal.
Without top scorer Harry Kane, who only played the final half hour or so, Bayern stayed eight points clear of defending champion Bayer Leverkusen with 11 rounds remaining.
The only blemish from Bayern’s point of view was an injury to Joshua Kimmich in the first half. The Bayern midfielder had to go off after clutching the back of his left thigh.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany opted against starting Kane, who sustained a facial injury in the draw against Leverkusen last weekend. Altogether he made six changes to the team that drew with Celtic 1-1 in the Champions League playoffs on Tuesday, with Bayern veteran Thomas Müller leading the attack.
“We heard a few things about ourselves last week,” Bayern board member for sport Max Eberl said of the team’s two draws. “We stayed calm. We focused on what we wanted to achieve, namely beating the third-placed team in the German league at home. And that’s what we did.”
Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitiké had the best chance early on after a mistake from Hiroki Ito, before Musiala had Bayern’s first opportunity cleared off the line. There were more to come.
Bayern dominated proceedings and duly took the lead through Michael Olise before the break.
Ito was left free at a corner to score the second goal in the 61st. It was the Japan defender’s first goal for Bayern.
Champions League hopes damaged
Both Stuttgart and Leipzig drew their games on Sunday, denting their hopes of qualifying for Europe’s top club competition.
Leipzig was held to a 2-2 draw at home by relegation-threatened Heidenheim, then Stuttgart failed to capitalize as Hoffenheim fought from a goal down to draw 1-1 in the late game.
Those results left Freiburg fourth — in the last place for Champions League qualification — followed by Mainz, ahead of Leipzig on goal difference.
Stuttgart stayed seventh, two points behind sixth-placed Leipzig.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
BY CIARÁN FAHEY
AP Sports Writer
