Bayern recover from early shock to ease past Shakhtar
| Photo: Christof Koepsel/Getty Images |
Bayern Munich took the next step towards qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League with a comfortable 5-1 win over Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday night.
The Bavarians, who were without key players such as Manuel Neuer, Alphonso Davies and Harry Kane due to injury, made the short trip to Gelsenkirchen for the game, with Shakhtar unable to play at home due to the war in Ukraine.
Despite being heavy favorites, things did not start well for Vincent Kompany's men, who found themselves behind after just five minutes when Kevin finished off a well-worked counter-attack to give Shakhtar a shock lead.
It didn't take long for Bayern to respond, though, as Konrad Laimer's 11th-minute strike levelled the scores.
In their search for the lead, Bayern continued to put together good moves, but on several occasions they lacked the final touch and the right decision in the final third.
Then, out of nowhere, Shakhtar almost went ahead again in the 44th minute when the ball fell to Georgiy Sudakov, who shot wide from a promising position.
Instead, Bayern went up the other end and secured a lead they could take into half-time. Bayern won possession high up the pitch and Jamal Musiala set up Thomas Müller for the visitors' second goal of the night.
The second half began with Shakhtar causing Bayern some problems with corner kicks, but the Bavarians escaped unscathed.
Bayern quickly regained control and thought they had taken the lead in the 65th minute when Jamal Musiala headed the ball in at the back post from a corner. However, the goal was controversially disallowed by the referee, who ruled that Mathys Tel had blocked Shakhtar goalkeeper Dmytro Riznyk's path.
It wasn't long before Bayern's third goal came from a penalty that was at least as controversial as Musiala's, with Alaa Ghram adjudged to have fouled Sacha Boey. In Harry Kane's absence, Michael Olise stepped up to the plate with an ice-cold strike.
Bayern added two late goals in the closing stages through Jamal Musiala and Michael Olise, who dribbled through the Shakhtar defence just before the final whistle to seal a comfortable 5-1 victory.
The win takes Bayern's tally in the Champions League to 12 points from six games, with games against Feyenoord and Slovan Bratislava still to come.
