Bayern took a giant stride towards the Champions League knockout round after overcoming Fiorentina in an action-packed Group F meeting.
The 63,000 capacity crowd at the Allianz Arena had barely settled into their seats before they were on their feet again applauding Miroslav Klose’s expertly taken fourth-minute opener. Bastian Schweinsteiger doubled the advantage on 25 minutes, and although the German double winners rode their luck on occasion in a first half where both defences looked suspect, the sides turned round with the home team two goals to the good.
The second half was a much more cautious affair as Bayern in particular tightened up the loose ends in midfield, and although Klose and Adrian Mutu might easily have traded goals towards the end, the final flourish belonged to gifted veteran Ze Roberto with a glorious third goal to round off an ultimately deserved win for the German champions.
With Olympique Lyon defeating Steaua Bucharest 5-3 in the parallel fixture, Bayern reamin top of the group at the halfway point on seven points from three matches, ahead of Lyon (5), Fiorentina (2) and Steaua (1).
No change to winning team
With Luca Toni shaking off an injury picked up in the Bundesliga on Saturday, Bayern boss Jürgen Klinsmann opted not to change a winning team and fielded the line-up which started the weekend victory in Karlsruhe.
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