Bayern Munich delivered a professional performance to take all three points against Union Berlin.
After a two month layoff, Bayern Munich resumed Bundesliga action with a comfortable 2-0 victory against Union Berlin on Sunday. The victory came courtesy of two late setpiece goals in each half from Robert Lewandowski and Benjamin Pavard.
Hansi Flick went with a three-man midfield with Leon Goretzka as number ten. The German manager made another change to the lineup that started against Augsburg in March, Joshua Zirkzee made way for Lewandowski. Ivan Perisic also made it to the matchday squad while Javi Martinez misses out.
The hosts also made wholesale of changes from their last lineup in matchday 25. Florian Hubner slotted in the defense, replacing suspended Marvin Friedrich. In midfield, Grischa Promel replaced Robert Andrich. Uri Fischer went with Marcus Ingvartsen and Anthony Ujah in the attack due to the absence of Yunus Mali and Sebastian Anderson.
Die Roten started the game slowly, while Union Berlin looked sharp from the word go. They tried to catch the visitors off guard by creating two great opportunities. Ujah was a nuisance for Bayern’s defense when Union Berlin released long balls from the back.
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Slowly and steadily, Rekordmeister got hold of the game and started dictating play. They opened the scoring after Thomas Muller poked the ball into the net from close range. However, VAR disallowed the goal since the German forward was marginally offside.
The hosts continued to frustrate Die Roten by defending in numbers and covering spaces in the final third. They linked up well in the final third, but the killer pass was missing. Eventually, Bayern went ahead, courtesy of a penalty scored by Lewandowski in 40th minute. Goretzka was fouled by Neven Subotic while trying to win the second ball.
Since chances were hard to come by, Die Roten needed to get an early lead in the game, calming down few nerves. With their tails up, Bayern started creating more chances. Pavard came close to scoring with a vicious volley at the end of the first half.
The visitors tried to maintain the intensity in the second half, coming close to double the lead after a neat interchange between Serge Gnabry and Goretzka in the box. The German midfielder couldn’t finish the move as his shot missed the target by few inches.
Die Roten continued to toil in Union Berlin’s half, moving the ball from one flank to other but failing to break the stubborn defense. The effect of not playing for such a long time was visible as players were struggling to execute simple passes, losing the ball cheaply in the final third.
The home side was eager to sit deep and wait for one opportunity. Serge Gnabry came close to scoring in the 76th minute. The German winger played the ball to Kingsley Coman after dribbling through midfield. Coman served a cross on a plate for Gnabry, but he couldn’t make the right connection. The second goal eventually came ten minutes before the final whistle. Pavard headed the ball into the goal after Joshua Kimmich delivered an inch-perfect cross from the corner.
Die Roten saw out the rest of the game by keeping the ball. The win made sure that Bayern regained their four-point lead at the top of the table after Borussia Dortmund had cut short it by clinching victory against FC Schalke on Saturday.
"Bayern Munich (4-2-3-1)NeuerPavard-Boateng-Alaba-DaviesKimmich-ThiagoMuller-Goretzka-GnabryLewandowskiSubstitutes– Ulreich, Hernandez, Mai, Odriozola, Perisic (Gnabry↑ (85′)), Coman (Goretzka ↑ (70′)), Cuisance (Muller↑ (90′)), ZirkzeeUnion Berlin (3-4-3)GikiweiczHubner-Schlotterbeck-SuboticTrimmel-Andrich-Promel-LensIngvartsen-Ujah-BulterSubstitutes– Nicolas,Gentner ( Andrich↑ (70′)), Kroos (Promel↑ (85′)), Mees (Ingvartsen ↑ (81′)), Polter, Ryerson (Bulter↑ (85′)), Nicolas, Parensen, Reichel, Andersson (Ujah↑ (70′))"