Bayern come from behind to beat Köln

FC Bayern beat Köln 3-1 on Wednesday to consolidate their lead in the Bundesliga. Linton Maina and Serge Gnabry traded goals in the first half, with Minjae Kim and Lennart Karl scoring in the second half to seal three points. The victory means Bayern set a new record at the halfway mark of a Bundesliga season, taking 47 points with a goal difference of +53.

Munich lined up with Manuel Neuer in goal and Konrad Laimer, Jonathan Tah, Kim and Hiroki Ito in defence. Leon Goretzka and Aleksandar Pavlović anchored a midfield featuring Michael Olise, Gnabry and Luis Díaz, with Harry Kane up front. Dayot Upamecano, Karl, Tom Bischof and Raphaël Guerreiro came on for Tah, Gnabry, Olise and Ito in the second half.

Level at half-time

It was a very entertaining first half and Köln had an early chance when Neuer proved equal to Said El Mala. Play was interrupted because of smoke from flares before keeper Köln keeper Marvin Schwäbe denied Ito and Olise, with Kane firing a rebound wide.

Gnabry saw an effort from distance saved and Jahmai Simpson-Pusey almost put through his own goal when Schwäbe missed his back pass, but the ball bounced just wide. Ragnar Ache miscued an effort, but Maina soon crowned a counter to hand Köln the lead. Munich levelled the scores when Olise played in Gnabry, who produced a fine first touch and a sumptuous finish when he hit the ball into the ground and over Schwäbe from a tight angle.

Second-half dominance

Bayern enjoyed much more of the ball after half-time, but Köln were solid at the back. Olise saw a free-kick saved before Kim made a fine block against Jakub Kaminski at the other end. Neuer denied a later Kaminski effort, whole Díaz and Goretzka failing to hit the target.

Vincent Kompany’s men finally took the lead when Díaz’s cross found Ito at the far post, who headed back for Kim to nod home. Another Díaz cross only just evaded Olise, but Karl soon slotted home after good work by the Colombian to put the game to bed.

The win takes Bayern onto 47 points from 17 matches, 11 clear of Borussia Dortmund. The Bavarians will be back in action on Saturday when they travel to face RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga.

Live match report for fcbayern.com by Greg Salmen