Thiago spares Bayern blushes
berlin — Thiago Alcantara’s second-half equaliser rescued Bayern Munich in Saturday’s 2-2 draw at home to Mainz as the runaway Bundesliga leaders had to twice come from behind.
Having bowed out of the Champions League quarter-finals 6-3 on aggregate following Tuesday’s 4-2 second-leg defeat at Real Madrid, the draw caps a week to forget for Bayern, who are winless in their last four games.
Relegation-threatened Mainz came close to another shock win in Munich, but Bayern extended their unbeaten home run in the league to 20 matches dating back to March 2016, when they lost 2-1 to Mainz.
Spain star Thiago hit the equaliser 17 minutes from time to sneak the draw with Mainz just one point from the relegation places with four games left.
Second-placed RB Leipzig can cut Bayern’s lead to six points by winning at Schalke on Sunday.
Leipzig will host Carlo Ancelotti’s Bayern on the penultimate weekend on May 13.
Mainz took the lead just three minutes after kick-off at the Allianz Arena.
Arturo Vidal lost the ball on the edge of Bayern area and ex-Barcelona midfielder Bojan Krkic snapped up possession to slot his first goal for Mainz to stun the home crowd.
Normal service was resumed when Arjen Robben sprinted onto Franck Ribery’s superb pass and rifled home Bayern’s first equaliser on 16 minutes.
Munich then lost Austria defender David Alaba, clutching his thigh, moments later.
Bayern’s problems were compounded when his replacement Joshua Kimmich fouled Mainz’s Japan striker Yoshinori Muto in the area.
Bayern’s goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is sidelined with a foot fracture for the rest of the season and his replacement Sven Ulreich could not stop Daniel Brosinski’s penalty on 41 minutes to put Mainz 2-1 up at the break. —