Bayern battle past Wolfsburg

FC Bayern started their Bundesliga campaign on a winning note, beating VfL Wolfsburg 3-2 on Sunday. Jamal Musiala handed Bayern an early lead, but Wolfsburg turned things around early in the second half with a Lovro Majer brace. A Jakub Kaminski own goal restored parity, with Serge Gnabry scoring a late winner to seal three points. Thomas Müller came off the bench to make his 709th competitive appearance for Bayern, a joint record alongside Sepp Maier. He now also boasts the most Bundesliga appearances for Bayern outright.

Bayern lined up with Manuel Neuer in goal and Sacha Boey, Dayot Upamecano, Minjae Kim and Alphonso Davies in defence. Joshua Kimmich and Aleksandar Pavlović anchored a midfield featuring Gnabry, Musiala and Michael Olise, with Harry Kane up front. Müller, Kingsley Coman and Eric Dier came on for Boey, Olise and Kim in the second half.

Jamal on target

The match got off to a lively start, with Bayern soon asserting their dominance. Wolfsburg goalkeeper Kamil Grabara denied Gnabry, Kane and Kimmich, but Munich took the lead when Boey wriggled clear and cut back for Musiala to turn in.

The pace dropped after that, with FCB seeing more of the ball. Gnabry saw an effort saved and also fired off target. With no more goals to come, Bayern were one up at half-time but rued the missed chances to extend their lead.

Scorching second half

Wolfsburg were a different proposition after the restart and levelled the scores when Boey upended Tiago Tomás in the box, with Majer dispatching the ensuing penalty inside the first two minutes. Grabara saved from Gnabry before Majer hit the post and Mattias Svanberg miscued the rebound. The Wolves struck again when Bayern gifted away possession, with Patrick Wimmer darting into the box and inviting Majer to slot home.

Vincent Kompany's men went looking for an answer, Grabara directing Musiala’s shot onto the bar, but they were rewarded for their pressure when Kaminski put through his own goal under pressure from Müller after Kane's header down at a corner. The pendulum continued to swing and Maximilian Arnold miscued from distance before Behrens had only Neuer to beat but fired wide. Kane saw a shot thwarted by Kaminski’s last-ditch block and Upamecano headed over, but Kane soon released the charging Gnabry, who slotted home off the inside of the far post. Svanberg miscued again as Bayern saw out time for a tight but ultimately deserved win.

Bayern will be back in action next Sunday, when they entertain Freiburg in the Bundesliga.

Live match report for fcbayern.com by Greg Salmen