Deadlock broken, breakthrough, release – whatever you want to call this special moment that Serge Gnabry provided after over an hour in the match against Hertha BSC, it may prove to be decisive. The 27-year-old's goal moved Bayern back above rivals Borussia Dortmund into first place in the table and got them back on track.
Bayern take their chance
The 3-1 defeat at Mainz last weekend left the Munich men chasing. All they could do was wait for their chance and pounce. Dortmund dropped points on the next matchday and Bayern were on hand – thanks to Gnabry.
There was relief all round when Serge Gnabry made it 1-0 in the 69th minute.
"It's about the first goal. It was a long time coming because we didn't take our chances. Then we scored the first goal and then the second. That did us good," summarised coach Thomas Tuchel. Up to then, his side had tested the nerves of the crowd at the Allianz Arena on this Sunday afternoon. It was one-way traffic: after around an hour of play, FCB had amassed 19-1 shots on goal, endless corners (18-1 in the end) and goalscoring chances – but the ball just didn't want to go in Oliver Christensen's net. It was Gnabry who finally put away the 20th attempt and delighted the majority of the crowd.
It was the winger's 10th goal of the season, as he once again hit double figures in his seventh Bundesliga campaign. The last man to achieve that in the first seven seasons of their Bundesliga career was a certain Claudio Pizarro. But such statistics were of little significance in this important match – what mattered was that the Germany international's goal finally rewarded the hosts for their efforts.
Kingsley Coman wrapped up the win with the second goal in the 79th minute.
"We didn't score for a long time, even though we had chances. Then we scored two superb goals and won. We're first now, which is very good," said Kingsley Coman, who made it 2-0 10 minutes later. Hasan Salihamidžić also recognised how hard Bayern worked for the three points. "It was a very tough game for us. Hertha are fully in the relegation battle, they sat very deep and defended the ball well," explained the board member for sport. "We played very patiently and didn't give them anything. Then we scored two goals near the end and are obviously happy about the win."
Hainer: It's in our hands
So, after a brief interlude, Bayern lead the way in the Bundesliga again with a slender one-point advantage over BVB. Now it's about getting over the line in the remaining four matches – no ifs, no buts. "Labour Day came a day early for us. It was a hard game but in the end we won deservedly," added club president Herbert Hainer, before highlighting: "Now it's in our hands, and that's the best you can wish for."
Here's the match report:
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