Matthijs de Ligt banger helps Bayern Munich beat Freiburg 1-0, stay top

An unstoppable long-range strike from defender Matthijs de Ligt handed Bayern Munich a 1-0 victory over Freiburg on Saturday, keeping them two points clear at the top of the table with seven games remaining.

Bayern, who face Manchester City in the Champions League quarterfinal first leg next week, had been beaten at home by Freiburg 2-1 in the German Cup on Tuesday.

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Desperate to make amends and protect their Bundesliga lead, Bayern had possession and a couple of good chances in the first half, but it was Freiburg who came closer to scoring with Ritsu Doan catching Alphonso Davies napping on the stroke of half-time but sending his effort onto the post.

Bayern were not at their best and coach Thomas Tuchel, in his second league game in charge, had to wait until six minutes after the restart for his team to finally break the deadlock.

It was De Ligt who took matters into his own hands after the interval, beating keeper Mark Flekken with his unstoppable missile into the top corner.

"We deserved to win and we had chances in both halves," Tuchel told reporters. "It was good that we stayed with it and pulled it through and we did not get negative after missing a few chances."

"We wanted to make amends, even if there's no way of getting the cup game back. But with 1-0 it was a deserved win. Now it's a quick switch-over for Tuesday because there is no alternative."

Bayern should have scored again through Leroy Sane on the hour, but the player chipped over the bar with only Flekken to beat.

They lead the title race on 58 points, with Borussia Dortmund, 2-1 winners over third-placed Union Berlin, on 56 in second place.

Freiburg, on 47, dropped into fifth place, with RB Leipzig moving up to fourth place on 48 after a nervous 1-0 victory at Hertha Berlin.