Reds held by stubborn Hertha

FC Bayern were left to rue two dropped points after being held to a 2-2 draw by Hertha Berlin on Sunday afternoon. Mats Hummels opened the scoring early in the contest and Robert Lewandowski doubled the lead shortly after the restart, but Berlin's Ondrej Duda and Salomon Kalou soon struck twice to level the scores.

Bayern started with Sven Ulreich in goal and Joshua Kimmich, Jérôme Boateng, Hummels and David Alaba in a back four. Javi Martínez and Corentin Tolisso anchored a midfield featuring Arjen Robben and Franck Ribéry out wide and Thomas Müller in the playmaking role, with Lewandowski as the lone striker.

Caretaker coach Willy Sagnol made four changes to the XI that faced PSG on Wednesday. Hummels, Boateng, Robben and Ribéry took over from Niklas Süle, Thiago, James and the injured Arturo Vidal, with Martínez moving up from the back four to defensive midfield.

Mats opens

The 71,212 crowd at Berlin Olympiastadion saw the record champions signal their intent from the off. Hummels miscued a header after five minutes but soon atoned for his miss. The centre-back connected with a Boateng cross to prove his aerial prowess once again, breaking the deadlock with a fine header that sailed past Hertha netminder Rune Jarstein and into the corner of the net.

The away faithful were in for a shock when match official Harm Osmers pointed to the spot following a Martínez tackle in the Bayern box, but Osmers revised his decision after taking a look at the pitch-side monitor.

Munich enjoyed far more of the ball, the men from the capital parking the bus at times, but chances proved few and far between. Headers by Boateng and Martínez went wide before Hertha's Vladimír Darida drew a good save from Ulreich. Lewandowksi shone with a fine lob over Jarstein but his effort was scrambled off the goal-line before Osmers blew for half-time.

Disappointing second half

Lewandowski doubled the lead shortly after the interval, brilliantly gaining possession on the edge of the box and drilling a shot past Jarstein. However, the home side replied almost instantly, when Duda tapped in after a mazy dribble by Genki Haraguchi.

The day soon turned sour, Kalou making the most of a mix-up in the Bayern box following a 56th-minute set-piece. Thiago came on for Robben now but the next shock followed on the hour when Ribéry sustained what looked like a severe knee injury and had to be carried off the pitch, Coman taking over from his French compatriot.

The home side were buoyed by their two goals and the match turned into a dour midfield struggle, Bayern increasingly resorting to efforts from distance. Süle replaced Boateng with ten minutes to go before the men from Munich upped the pace in the closing stages. However, Sagnol's team failed to create anything of attacking note, Lewandowski's twenty-five yarder sailing wide, and Osmers blew for full-time with the score still 2-2.

The result means Bayern have 14 points from seven Bundesliga matches and lie second in the table, five points off leaders Dortmund. A large number of FCB pros will be away on national team duty during the international break, before the Reds return to action on 14 October when they entertain Freiburg in the Bundesliga.

Live match report for fcbayern.com by Greg Salmen