Leverkusen, Oct 17: Robert Lewandowski and Serge Gnabry scored twice apiece as Bayern Munich demolished Bayer Leverkusen 5-1 on Sunday to return to the top of the Bundesliga table.
Four goals in seven minutes left Leverkusen in tatters before half-time as Bayern made a statement win to underline why it’s chasing a 10th consecutive title and proved it’s bounced back from a rare defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt last time out.
Bayern needed less than four minutes to take the lead with a touch of style from Lewandowski.
Erling Haaland scored twice on his return for Borussia Dortmund to beat Mainz 3-1 on Saturday. Haaland blasted a penalty straight down the middle in the 54th minute and sealed the result in injury time.
Haaland missed Dortmund’s previous three games with what the club said were muscular problems.
But it was captain Marco Reus who opened the scoring on Saturday, unleashing a brilliant shot with his left boot inside the top right corner in the third minute.
Haaland used sheer force to score Dortmund’s second after Silvan Widmer was penalized through VAR for hand ball after the ball hit his elbow.
Zentner got his hand to Haaland’s centrally placed shot but couldn’t keep out the shot.
Jonathan Burkardt’s 87th-minute goal prompted a late push from the visitors, but Jude Bellingham won the ball off a defender and crossed for Haaland to seal the result with what was effectively the last play of the game. He has 13 goals in eight games this season.
Both Berlin teams won: Union defeated Wolfsburg 2-0 to stretch its unbeaten record at home in the Bundesliga to 21 games, and Hertha claimed a surprise 2-1 win at Eintracht Frankfurt.
Marco Richter’s light touch to Vladimir Darida’s cross sent the ball in off the right post in the seventh minute, and substitute Jurgen Ekkelenkamp scored what proved to be the winner in the 63rd to ease the pressure on coach Pál Dárdai. Union is up to fifth after its third consecutive league win.
Taiwo Awoniyi opened the scoring after halftime. Wolfsburg coach Mark van Bommel sent on Wout Weghorst and Ridle Baku to boost his team’s attacking threat, and Sheraldo Becker sealed the win in the 83rd.
Modest Freiburg remains the only unbeaten team after holding Leipzig to 1-1 in its first Bundesliga game at its new stadium.
Stuttgart held on for 1-1 at Gladbach later. (AP)
