Goal scorers in bundesliga

BERLIN: Werder Bremen and Bayer Leverkusen are bracing for their most important games of the Bundesliga season as relegation looms over the former and a highly lucrative Champions League spot is on the line for the latter on Saturday's final matchday. Champions Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig have secured three of the four Champions League spots and Leverkusen would have been in the driving seat for the fourth but for a shock 2-0 defeat at Hertha Berlin on Saturday. That loss allowed Borussia Moenchengladbach to leapfrog them into fourth on 62 points, two ahead of Leverkusen, who must now beat Mainz 05 on Saturday and hope Gladbach slip up at home against Hertha. Playing in Europe's elite club competition has become even more important for clubs given sharp declines in revenues due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "For Saturday there is only one goal and that is to win our home game against Mainz," Leverkusen's attacking midfielder Nadiem Amiri said. "We must be … [Read more...] about Final day Bundesliga drama awaits Werder and Leverkusen

BERLIN: Leon Goretzka's 86th minute goal gave Bayern Munich a 2-1 victory over visitors Borussia Moenchengladbach on Saturday (Jun 13), meaning they need to win just one of their last three matches to secure the Bundesliga title. Goretzka tapped in Benjamin Pavard's cutback to send Bayern seven points clear at the top of the table. Second-placed Borussia Dortmund secured a last-gasp 1-0 win at Fortuna Duesseldorf. Bayern, who could seal the title on Tuesday at Werder Bremen, are on 73 points, with Dortmund on 66. Gladbach remain fourth on 56. Bayern, missing suspended top scorer Robert Lewandowski and the league's best provider Thomas Mueller, took the lead in the 26th minute when Gladbach keeper Yann Sommer, having made a sensational save only seconds earlier, passed the ball out into the path of Bayern's Joshua Zirkzee. The Dutch forward only needed to fire into an empty goal. The visitors, themselves in the hunt for a Champions League spot, went into the break level when … [Read more...] about Football: Late Goretzka goal gives Bayern 2-1 win over Gladbach

BERLIN: Bayern Munich could cap a memorable season with their eighth straight Bundesliga title on Saturday and should they wrap it up with a home victory over Borussia Moenchengladbach the plaudits would go to coach Hansi Flick who turned their campaign around. Bayern are on 70 points, seven clear of second-placed Dortmund, who travel to Fortuna Duesseldorf earlier on Saturday. Should Bayern win and Dortmund lose then the Bavarians would have an unassailable lead of 10 points with three games left. It is a far cry from where they were in November when 55-year-old Flick was promoted from assistant coach to replace Niko Kovac who was sacked with the team struggling for form having dropped to fourth in the table. The Bavarians, who had won the seven previous league titles in commanding fashion, were then a shadow of their normally dominant selves with Borussia Dortmund emerging as serious title contenders. Flick instantly instilled confidence in the insecure backline, while also … [Read more...] about Bayern close in on eighth straight Bundesliga crown

BERLIN: Joshua Kimmich described his winning goal as "brutally important" after Bayern Munich took a huge step towards an eighth straight Bundesliga title on Tuesday (May 26) with a 1-0 win at Borussia Dortmund to leave them seven points clear at the top with just six games left. Kimmich's brilliant effort came just before half-time behind closed doors at Signal Iduna Park as hosts Dortmund missed the chance to turn up the heat on the Bavarians without the backing of their huge support. "It was brutally important: I looked around to see if everyone understood how important it was," Kimmich said of his deft chip. Kimmich's captain Manuel Neuer echoed the defensive midfielder's thoughts. "That was a very important sign," said Neuer. Bayern won 4-0 when the teams met in Munich in November and they kept up their excellent recent record against second-placed Dortmund. "Now only Bayern can decide what happens," said frustrated Dortmund captain Mats Hummels. "Sometimes, … [Read more...] about Football: Bayern Munich down Dortmund to close on Bundesliga title

REUTERS: The eyes of the sports world will be on Germany's Bundesliga this weekend as it becomes the first "big league" to restart after the COVID-19 shutdown, but little will have changed on the pitch with Bayern Munich hunting an eighth straight crown. The German Football League decided last week to resume the first and second divisions from May 16 after a two-month suspension, with teams undergoing a seven-day isolation period after testing for the new coronavirus. Leaders Bayern begin the final nine matchdays with a trip to Union Berlin on Sunday with Borussia Dortmund, four points behind the Bavarians, playing Schalke 04 a day earlier. "The Bundesliga manages to become the first big league worldwide to restart," Bayern CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said. "And with the Bundesliga as the only league to be broadcast on TV, I expect we will have an audience of a billion," he told SportBild magazine on Wednesday. Strict health regulations mean all games will be played in empty … [Read more...] about Football: Bundesliga restarts amid pandemic