A reshuffled Bayern side handed boss Jupp Heynckes the perfect present to mark his 1,000th Bundesliga contest as player and coach with a convincing victory over ten-man Werder Bremen on Saturday. It was a fine way to follow the midweek triumph against Arsenal, and the best-possible warm-up for Wednesday’s crunch DFB Cup clash with arch-rivals Dortmund.
The 71,000 full house at the Allianz Arena saw the unfamiliar home line-up hit their stride midway through the first period and roar into a two-goal lead courtesy of Arjen Robben and Javi Martinez. The Werder cause suffered even more harm on the stroke of half-time when Sebastian Prödl saw a straight red card for hauling down Mario Gomez as last man.
The ten-man visitors were four goals down barely five minutes into the second half after an own goal from Theodor Gebre Selassie and a close-range finish from Gomez, the Germany international’s 100th goal in a red shirt. Belgium midfielder Kevin de Bruyne spoiled Munich’s proud defensive record in 2013 with a consolation for Bremen on the hour, but Franck Ribery and Gomez again made it a half-dozen goals for the boss at the end.
In the Bundesliga standings, the records continue to tumble as runaway leaders FCB now have 60 points from their 23 matches and lead second-placed Dortmund by 18 points overnight, although the champions can claw back three of those points when they travel to Mönchengladbach on Sunday. The Bavarians now turn their attention to the eagerly-awaited midweek cup showdown with BVB, before returning to domestic action away to struggling Hoffenheim next Sunday afternoon.
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