Bayern Munich traveled Saturday to face RB Leipzig at Red Bull Arena, as they need to win to secure a Bundesliga title. But they were for a surprise in the first half as the hosts were performing great and headed towards the break with a two-goal advantage through Benjamin Sesco (11′) and Lucas Klosterman (39′). The Champions Elect responded furiously in the second half, with goals from Eric Dear (62′), Michael Oris (63′) and Leroy Thane (83′) turning the game. However, another shock was very slow as Yussuf Poulsen left the bench and got equal in the final seconds of the 4-minute stop time.
team
Both sides had considerable squad problems to avoid.
For Leipzig, the head coach of Zsolt Low could not call goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi, defenders Willi Orban, Benjamin Henrichs and midfielder Xavier Schlager on various injuries.
Maarten Vandevoordt replaced Gulacsi with the goal. Costa Nedelzikovich and David Raum were defending center backs Klosterman and Castello Lukba. Kevin Kampl and Amadou Haidara paired up in the middle of the park, with Xavi Simons and Nicolas Seiwald in a more advanced position. Sesko and Lois Openda formed an offensive duo.
Meanwhile, Bayern boss Vincent Company was in even worse situations. More than seven defenders, Dayot Upamecano, Kim Min-Jae, Alphonso Davies, Hiroki Ito and Midfielders Jamal Musiala, Raphael Guerreiro and Tarek Buchmann, were injured, goalkeeper Sven Ulreich missed for personal reasons, and Striker Harry Kane provided the Yellow Kane.
Veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was left on the bench, and Jonas Irvig was standing between the posts as Ulreich was unavailable. The defensive crisis forced Company to move fullback Josip Stanisic to the centre of his defense, where he joined Deer. Joshua Kimic and Alexander Pavlovich covered the central area of the pitch, while Sane and Oris attacked from the side. Thomas Muller and Serge Gunaburi were the players closest to the opposition’s goals.
Short summary
Leipzig bravely entered the contest, but they had already wasted two good opportunities. Sesco has produced top-class curlers to beat the city and beat deadlocks.
Bayern looked totally helpless by doing something beforehand. Muller’s efforts were praiseworthy, but not effective. The veterans had little support for what they had tried to do multiple times, with Gnabry, Sane, and especially Olise. The lack of Kane and Musiala spoke very much.
And things quickly got worse in order to become champions. As the first half approached the final minutes, we discovered that Raum’s well-touched free kick was Klosterman’s head, double Leipzig’s lead.
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The fly on the walls of visitors’ dressing rooms will probably have a lot to report on what Company said to players during the break, but whatever that was, it clearly worked.
The Bayerns were fully re-entered into the battle after the restart, and just a minute passed after Deer skillfully decoupled the corner of the Olize, defeating Van DeVodart at a nearby post, and Pavlovic took advantage of a loose Raumpass to gain ownership of his team in the opposition half while Oris finished a quick counterattack.
Bayerns were now completely on their feet, with strong momentum on their side, and it was only a matter of time before they attacked again. Reimer missed a shining opportunity and sent a header over the bar from either yards or two, but Thane kept his cool in the 83rd minute. At that moment, Kane left the stands to watch the rest of the match from the touchline, so the title looked very close.
However, the England captain and his club’s teammates were in yet another shock. Their momentum faded. They already seemed to be celebrating in their heads when they were harshly reminded of the ruthlessness of the sport at this level. The sudden shortage of defensive organizations literally managed to find Poulsen one-on-one with Urbig, in the final seconds of the match. The away fans stopped short in celebration as the alternative striker from Leipzig created a touch of class by tipping Bayern goalkeeper and putting the ball in the net.
The final seconds of retreat makes little sense for Bayern’s title pursuit
Thus, Bayern was mathematically prevented them from clinching the title that day, but in the end they really didn’t stop them from winning. They currently have a nine-point advantage over second-placed Bayer Leverkusen. The defending champions have a chance to cut to six on Sunday against Freiburg (not a positive conclusion to be precise), but only two games remain for each team. Bayern currently boasts a goal difference from their 30 rivals, and a big miracle coincides as they will not ultimately regain their Bundesliga title.
Bayern will certainly be the champions, whether it’s Sunday or next week.
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Meanwhile, Poulsen’s equalizer may prove to be still important for Leipzig, who continues to hunt for Champions League qualifiers. After Saturday’s match, they finished sixth with 50 points, four in third place than Aintrak’s Frankfurt, one in fourth in fourth, one in Freiburg, three in fifth in the Mainz 05, and third in the eighth in the Vader Bremen. However, it should be said that along with Freiburg, he is in a fight against Mainz’s host Eintracht Leverkusen on Sunday.