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Rediff.com  » Sports » PIX: Bayern demolish Wolfsburg to end season on high

PIX: Bayern demolish Wolfsburg to end season on high

Last updated on: June 27, 2020 22:06 IST
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'We have never experienced a season ending in such a way, no fans, no whistles, no cheers.'

IMAGE: Bayern Munich captain Manuel Neuer and teammates celebrate with the German Bundesliga trophy after their final league match against VfL Wolfsburg in Wolfsburg, on Saturday. Photograph: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

Bayern Munich, already crowned Bundesliga champions last week, lifted the league trophy in an empty stadium on Saturday after crushing hosts VfL Wolfsburg 4-0 on the final matchday.

 

The Bavarians, who have matched a club record of 25 matches in all competitions without defeat and are unbeaten in the Bundesliga in 2020, went ahead in the fourth minute with Kingsley Coman netting from Thomas Mueller's 21st assist, a league record.

Mickael Cuisance then rifled in from 25 metres for a sensational goal in the 37th and the 20-year-old Frenchman earned a penalty, which resulted in Joshua Guilavogui being sent off with a second booking. Bundesliga top scorer Robert Lewandowski converted it for his 34th goal of the season.

The Polish striker earned his fifth Bundesliga top scorer award and his third in a row. Mueller then made it 4-0 in the 79th minute as Bayern took their season goal tally to 100, one less than the league record set by them in the 1971-72 season.

IMAGE: Robert Lewandowski scores the third goal for Bayern Munich. Photograph: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

For Wolfsburg the defeat denied them a direct Europa League group stage spot, leaving them in seventh place.

The bizarre trophy ceremony in the empty Wolfsburg stadium was a reflection of the season that was interrupted for more than two months in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

With no families, fans or friends in the stands to share their joy, the Bayern players were left to celebrate lifting the sparkling trophy with a handful of club bosses in the stands.

Bayern can win more silverware next week with the German Cup final against Bayer Leverkusen. They are also still in the Champions League.

"It is a special but strange moment," said German football League CEO Christian Seifert in an address before the trophy ceremony.

"We have never experienced a season ending in such a way, no fans, no whistles, no cheers.

"It is not the Bundesliga we want but the only Bundesliga that could be played under the circumstances. This championship title belongs a bit to all of us to have played the season out and it ends with a sporting champion."

Werner bids Leipzig farewell with double

Timo Werner

IMAGE: Timo Werner celebrates with teammates after scoring the second goal for RB Leipzig. Photograph: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images

German striker Timo Werner marked his RB Leipzig swansong with two well-taken goals to guide his side to a 2-1 victory at Augsburg in the Bundesliga on Saturday.

Leipzig full back Nordi Mukiele and midfielder Emil Forsberg spurned glorious opportunities before Werner, who will depart for Chelsea at the end of the season, put his side in front in the 28th minute.

The 24-year-old latched on to a defence-splitting pass from Amadou Haidara before rounding Augsburg goalkeeper Tomas Koubek for his 27th league goal of the season.

Augsburg, who had a red card for Philipp Max overturned by VAR in the second half, hit back through Ruben Vargas, whose long-range effort proved too powerful for Yvon Mvogo to keep out.

Werner added a second eight minutes from time, latching on to Angelino's cross-field pass and firing into the bottom corner.

The result means Leipzig end the season in third place with 66 points, one shy of their record Bundesliga tally achieved in 2016-17, while Augsburg finish in 15th with 36 points, five clear of the relegation zone.

Gladbach book last Champions League spot with win

IMAGE: Jonas Hofmann of Borussia Moenchengladbach celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's first goal. Photograph: Lars Baron/Getty Images

Borussia Moenchengladbach capped a successful season with a spot in next season's Champions League group stage on Saturday by beating Hertha Berlin 2-1 on the final day of Bundesliga action for 2019/20 to finish in fourth place.

Jonas Hofmann tapped in after good work from Breel Embolo as Gladbach controlled the game throughout. By the 65th minute they had 17 shots compared to Hertha's one.

The roles were reversed in the 78th minute, with Embolo scoring at the far post after Hofmann had shaken off two markers to cut back into the box.

Gladbach, who had leapfrogged Bayer Leverkusen into fourth place last week, finished on 65 points, two ahead of Leverkusen. Vedad Ibisevic cut the deficit for Hertha in second-half stoppage time.

The top four teams qualify automatically for the Champions League group stage.

Kramaric hits four as Hoffenheim stun Dortmund

Andrej Kramaric

IMAGE: Andrej Kramaric, right, celebrates after scoring the first goal for Hoffenheim. Photograph: Martin Rose/Getty Images

Andrej Kramaric became the first Hoffenheim player to score four goals in a Bundesliga game, overwhelming Borussia Dortmund with a one-sided 4-0 away victory on Saturday.

The Croatian striker, his club's top scorer this season, took his campaign tally to 13 as Europa League-bound Hoffenheim moved above VfL Wolfsburg to finish in fifth place on 52 points.

Dortmund were already confirmed as runners-up to Bayern Munich, but after this embarrassing home defeat finished 13 points adrift of the champions.

Dortmund did threaten early when Norwegian teenager Erling Haaland forced a full stretch save out of visiting goalkeeper Oliver Baumann in the fifth minute.

But after that it was 29-year-old Kramaric who dominated the game.

He opened the scoring after eight minutes after good build up, picking his spot and curling the ball home from just outside the penalty area.

On the half hour mark the former Leicester City forward doubled his tally after beating the offside trap to slot home from close range.

After the break, Kramaric was given far too much room by a sleepy Dortmund defence to complete his hat-trick in the 48th minute.

When home defender Mats Hummels pushed Moanes Dabbur in the penalty area two minutes later, Kramaric stepped up to slot the ball home under the body of Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Burki to seal a dominant performance.

"I dreamt about the possibility of a penalty before the game but, to be honest, my penalty was not all that well taken. I had decided before that if I got a penalty it would be a no-look effort and I got a bit lucky," he said of the effort that just crept under Burki's body.

"It's really amazing stuff and feeling to score four goals in this stadium to win this game and to get direct qualification into the Europa League," Kramaric added.

"Things like this do not happen often in a player's career."

Six-goal Werder Bremen avoid automatic relegation

IMAGE: Josh Sargent celebrates after scoring the sixth goal for Werder Bremen. Photograph: Oliver Hardt/Getty Images

Werder Bremen extended their 39-year stay in the Bundesliga for at least another 10 days on Saturday, when they thumped Cologne 6-1 to avoid automatic relegation.

The four-times Bundesliga champions completed the first half of what could become a great escape as they climbed out of the drop zone and leapfrogged Fortuna Duesseldorf to finish 16th in the 18-team table.

They now face a two-leg playoff against the team that finishes third in the second division -- either VfB Stuttgart, Heidenheim or Hamburg SV -- on July 2 and 6. Fortuna lost 3-0 at Union and were relegated.

"It all went for us today, but this was just the semi-final... We still have to play the final," said Werder midfielder Davy Klaassen.

Werder, who began the day two points behind Fortuna with a worse goal difference, have missed only one season, 1980-81, in the Bundesliga since it was founded in 1963.

The hosts, who had scored only nine goals at home all season before Saturday, struck three times in a six-minute spell midway through the first half.

Yuya Osako broke through in the 23rd minute, coolly slotting the ball past Timo Horn after he was picked out by Maximilian Eggestein in the penalty area.

Four minutes later, Milot Rashica burst down the left, dribbled past his marker and scored with a left-foot shot which went through Horn's legs. Then Niclas Fuellkrug got in front of his marker to flick Marco Friedl's cross into the net.

Klaassen tapped a rebound into the empty net after Rashica hit the post in the 55th minute, and Osako notched his second three minutes later, latching onto Theodor Gebre Selassie's cross.

Dominick Drexler pulled one back for the Billy Goats after pouncing on a misplaced Rashica pass, before Josh Sergeant made it 6-1 to Werder in the 68th minute.

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