Lewandowski treble helps Bayern overhaul Dortmund
BERLIN: Robert Lewandowski scored a hat-trick to leave him on 31 Bundesliga goals this season and seal Bayern Munich’s 4-2 comeback home win over Borussia Dortmund on Saturday in Germany’s ‘Klassiker.’
Dortmund raced into a 2-0 lead as Erling Braut Haaland netted twice in the first nine minutes behind closed doors at the Allianz Arena.
However Lewandowksi then struck twice, the second from the penalty spot, to haul Bayern level before the break.
Leon Goretzka put Bayern ahead for the first time with two minutes left before Lewandowski completed his hattrick on 90 minutes.
“The quality is certainly there, that’s our DNA,” said Thomas Mueller of Bayern’s fightback.
The win leaves Bayern two points clear of RB Leipzig at the top of the table.
“We shook ourselves up at 2-0 down and deserved to win because we were the dominant team for [the last] 60 minutes,” said Bayern coach Hansi Flick.
Bayern have won the last five meetings between the clubs.
“We weren’t good enough. We started well, but didn’t play good enough football. We should have been more brave,” said Dortmund midfielder Emre Can.
With 10 games left, Lewandowski threatens to break Gerd Mueller’s alltime record of 40 Bundesliga goals in the 1971/72 season.
LEIPZIG ROMP
Earlier RB Leipzig briefly climbed top of the table with a 3-0 romp at Freiburg thanks to goals by Christopher Nkunku, Alexander Sorloth and Emil Forsberg.
Leipzig impressed in their final tuneup before facing Liverpool in Budapest next Wednesday in the last 16 of the Champions League having lost the first leg 2-0.
Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann said goal-scoring left-back Angelino will “probably” miss the Liverpool game with a leg injury.
Third-placed Wolfsburg are now 10
points adrift of Bayern having stumbled to a 2-1 defeat at Hoffenheim whose striker Andrej Kramaric scored the winning goal just before half-time.
RESULTS
Freiburg 0 RB Leipzig 3 (Nkunku 41, Sorloth 64, Forsberg 79); Hertha Berlin 2 (Piatek 62, Lukebakio 90-pen) Augsburg 1 (Benes 2); Borussia Moenchengladbach 0 Bayer Leverkusen 1 (Schick 77); Hoffenheim 2 (Baumgartner 8, Kramaric 41) VfL Wolfsburg 1 (Weghorst 23); Eintracht Frankfurt 1 (Kostic 69) VfB Stuttgart 1 (Kalajdzic 68); Bayern Munich 4 (Lewandowski 26, 44-pen, 90, Goretzka 88) Borussia Dortmund 2 (Haaland 2, 9)