Bayern come from behind to overcome Freiburg

FC Bayern came from behind to beat Freiburg 3-2 in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Johan Manzambi and Lucas Höler netted for Freiburg after half-time, but Tom Bischof bagged a brace before Lennart Karl scored late into added time.

Munich started with Manuel Neuer in goal and Josip Stanišić, Minjae Kim, Jonathan Tah and Bischof in defence. Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka anchored a midfield featuring Karl, Raphaël Guerreiro and Luis Díaz, with Serge Gnabry up front. Konrad Laimer, Aleksandar Pavlović, Michael Olise, Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies took over from Tah, Goretzka, Guerreiro, Gnabry and Kim in the second half.

Goalless first half

It was an intense battle with chances at both ends, as Höler put the ball wide before Bischof aimed straight at keeper Noah Atuolu at the other end. Another Bischof effort was blocked before Philipp Treu fired a big chance wide. Kimmich also saw a shot saved.

Neuer made a fine stop against Höler before Gnabry put a free-kick into the wall. Neuer shone again when he kept out Philipp Lienhart’s header, with Atubolu denying Karl as it remained goalless at half-time.

Big Bayern comeback

Freiburg took the lead straight after the restart when they won the ball in Bayern’s half and Manzambi beat Neuer. Munich continued to struggle against the home side’s aggressive pressing, with Höler miscuing twice from promising positions. Olise knocked a golden opportunity wide straight after coming on.

Freiburg doubled the advantage when Höler netted at a corner. Olise saw one of his trademark shots saved, with Atubolu also denying Díaz, but Bayern pulled one back when Bischof’s powerful drive found the bottom left corner of the net. Munich upped the pressure and levelled the scores in added time, Olise’s short corner inviting Bischof to blast home into the other corner. The turnaround was complete nine minutes beyond the 90 when Kimmich’s pass found Davies, who squared for Karl to tap in and seal three points. 

The victory takes Bayern onto 73 points from 28 matches, 12 clear of Borussia Dortmund, who take on VfB Stuttgart later on Saturday. Vincent Kompany’s team will be back in action on Tuesday when they travel to face Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Live match report for fcbayern.com by Greg Salmen