- Robert Lewandowski (82' Pen)
Bayern Munich need Robert Lewandowski penalty to beat Augsburg
Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich needed an 82nd-minute penalty from top scorer Robert Lewandowski to snatch a 1-0 victory over visitors Augsburg on Saturday and protect their nine-point lead with five matches remaining.
Lewandowski converted the spot-kick awarded for a hand ball, breaking Augsburg's valiant resistance, to keep Bayern comfortably clear of second-placed Borussia Dortmund, winners 2-0 over Stuttgart on Friday, and on course for a record-extending 10th straight league title.
Bayern, who suffered their first Champions League loss of the season in midweek, going down 1-0 to Villarreal in the quarter-final first leg, were toothless for much of the game.
"Our first half performance was not good," midfielder Leon Goretzka said. "We were lacking in intensity and we started badly. But at the end it's all about winning. We did it better with our intensity in the second half."
Goretzka also promised a stronger performance in the return leg against Villarreal next week.
"We have to improve for Tuesday and we will," he said. "On Tuesday the stadium will be on fire and we will deliver a performance true to Bayern."
Bayern were shut out by a hard-working Augsburg defence, lacked any real tempo in their game and didn't manage a single corner kick in the first half.
Lewandowski thought he had finally broken the deadlock in the Bavarian derby with a 47th-minute header but Augsburg goalkeeper Rafal Gikiewicz somehow got a hand to the ball to push it away.
The keeper made an equally good save in the 62nd, palming a deflected Joshua Kimmich shot wide as Bayern started to make some inroads.
The hosts finally won the penalty after a VAR review of a Reece Oxford hand ball and Lewandowski stepped up to send Gikiewicz the wrong way for his 32nd league goal of the campaign.
Kimmich hit the crossbar with a powerful shot a little later as Bayern took complete control in the final minutes.
Game Information
- Referees:
- Patrick Ittrich
German Bundesliga Standings
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bayer Leverkusen | 30 | 25 | 5 | 0 | +55 | 80 |
| Bayern Munich | 30 | 21 | 3 | 6 | +50 | 66 |
| VfB Stuttgart | 30 | 20 | 3 | 7 | +32 | 63 |
| RB Leipzig | 30 | 18 | 5 | 7 | +35 | 59 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 30 | 16 | 9 | 5 | +23 | 57 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 30 | 11 | 12 | 7 | +6 | 45 |
| SC Freiburg | 30 | 11 | 7 | 12 | -11 | 40 |
| FC Augsburg | 30 | 10 | 9 | 11 | -1 | 39 |
| TSG Hoffenheim | 30 | 11 | 6 | 13 | -7 | 39 |
| 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 | 30 | 8 | 10 | 12 | -9 | 34 |
| Werder Bremen | 30 | 9 | 7 | 14 | -12 | 34 |
| Borussia Monchengladbach | 30 | 7 | 10 | 13 | -7 | 31 |
| VfL Wolfsburg | 30 | 8 | 7 | 15 | -15 | 31 |
| 1. FC Union Berlin | 30 | 8 | 5 | 17 | -24 | 29 |
| Mainz | 30 | 5 | 12 | 13 | -17 | 27 |
| VfL Bochum | 30 | 5 | 12 | 13 | -26 | 27 |
| FC Cologne | 30 | 4 | 10 | 16 | -30 | 22 |
| SV Darmstadt 98 | 30 | 3 | 8 | 19 | -42 | 17 |
Bundesliga News