Following the mid-week disappointment of the 3-1 away loss to Arsenal in the Champions League, Bayern Munich bounced back on Saturday with a victory against St. Pauli. Die Roten extended their unbeaten run in the Bundesliga by winning on matchday 12.
Bayern appeared to have started the match well enough until the 9th minute when St. Pauli striker Andreas Hontoundji scored against the run of play. However, just before the half-time whistle, Raphael Guerreiro equalized from close range after being teed up by Luis Diaz.
In the second half, it appeared as if St. Pauli were on their way to securing a vital point until two late strikes in added time, courtesy of a header from Luis Diaz, followed by a breakaway goal from substitute Nicolas Jackson.
Let’s take a look at three players who stood out for Bayern in Saturday’s surprisingly laborious victory over St. Pauli.
Luis Diaz
From a match in which Bayern thoroughly dominated possession, but for the most part, struggled to breach the St. Pauli defense, Luis Diaz was the clear difference maker. In the 44th minute, Diaz darted diagonally into the box to get onto the end of a long ball. The Colombian winger was shoved soon after controlling the ball, but whilst on the ground, he had the presence of mind to hook the ball back to an onrushing Raphael Guerreiro, who then hammered home the equalizer.
Diaz went one better in second-half added time when, following another darting run into the penalty area, he headed in a right-sided cross from Joshua Kimmich to give his team the lead in the 93rd. minute. Nicolas Jackson’s goal three minutes later added a measure of gloss to the scoreline just before the final whistle was blown.