Bayern fire 5 in second half, floor Mainz
BERLIN: Robert Lewandowski netted twice as Bayern Munich roared back from two goals down to earn a 5-2 home win over Mainz on Sunday which put the European champions back at the top of the Bundesliga.
Mainz’s 2-0 half-time lead was wiped out within 10 minutes of the restart as Bayern netted five unanswered secondhalf goals at the Allianz Arena.
The result leaves Bayern two points clear of second-placed RB Leipzig, who had gone top after their 1-0 win at Stuttgart on Saturday.
According to Bayern coach Hansi Flick, the fight back should give them “self-confidence” to tackle t heir congested fixture list in the coming weeks.
Mainz caretaker coach Jan Siewert insisted his side gave their all, but “you have to respect Bayern’s quality”.
Joshua Kimmich marked his return from a knee injury by bagging Bayern’s first, with Leroy Sane and Niklas Suele scoring before Lewandowski added two more goals to increase his league tally to 19.
Lewandowski, named last month as Fifa’s player of the year, has now netted 22 times in all competitions for Bayern this season.
Earlier, England winger Jadon Sancho scored his first Bundesliga goal this season to seal a 2-0 win for Borussia Dortmund at home against Wolfsburg to breathe life back into his side’s fading title hopes.
After crashing to a shock 2-1 defeat at Union Berlin before the league’s twoweek winter hiatus, Dortmund saw off a spirited Wolfsburg side. Dortmund broke the deadlock when Manuel Akanji’s powerful header hit the net on 66 minutes before Sancho broke clear to score their second in added time. AFP
Dortmund 2 (Akanji 66, Sancho 90+1) Wolfsburg 0; Bayern 5 (Kimmich 50, Sane 55, Sule 70, Lewandowski 76 pen and 83) Mainz 2 (Burkardt 32, Hack 44)