FREIBURG, Germany: Bayern Munich partly avenged their elimination from the German Cup by Freiburg midweek by winning their Bundesliga match 1-0 to keep the lead on Saturday.Bayern stayed two points clear of Borussia Dortmund ahead of a Champions League quarterfinal with Manchester City on Tuesday, but it was hardly a comfortable win.Just as in the cup quarterfinal loss to Freiburg on Tuesday — and in stark contrast to last week’s demolition of Dortmund in the “Klassiker” — Bayern struggled to finish off a determined and defensively well-organized Freiburg.Matthijs de Ligt’s speculative and powerful shot from distance, deflected into the top left corner, made the difference but Freiburg had chances to draw. Ritsu Doan hit the post for Freiburg just before the break and only another strong game from goalkeeper Yann Sommer, in place of the injured Manuel Neuer, kept Bayern’s lead intact.DORTMUND BEATS UNIONDortmund were on track for a third straight game without a win, and a four-point gap which could have meant the end of the title race, until substitute Youssoufa Moukoko took full advantage of a glaring error from Union to score in a 2-1 win.Donyell Malen’s 28th-minute opening goal was canceled by Kevin Behrens as Union sought valuable points in their quest to qualify for the Champions League for the first time.That work was undone when Union’s Paul Seguin botched an attempt to control the ball and accidentally played the perfect pass for the 18-year-old Moukoko to round the goalkeeper and score.OTHER GAMESBayer Leverkusen and coach Xabi Alonso continued their hot form with a seventh consecutive win in all competitions, beating Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1. With forward Patrik Schick and Adam Hlozek injured, the wingers stepped up for Leverkusen as Amine Adli and Moussa Diaby both scored.Leverkusen next heads into a Europa League quarterfinal against Belgian club Union Saint-Gilloise on Thursday.Cologne ended a six-game winless run by beating Augsburg 3-1.Mainz drew with Werder Bremen 2-2 after a late flurry of goals, with all four scored after the 85th minute as Bremen twice leveled the score.Hertha Berlin hosted Leipzig late.
Saturday, November 23, 2024