Five things we learnt in the Bundesliga

Berlin (AFP) – Bayern Munich’s away win at Mainz lifted them up to second in the Bundesliga table as their five closest rivals all failed to pick up three points at the weekend.

English teenager Jadon Sancho continues to shine for leaders Borussia Dortmund with two goals in their 2-2 draw at home to Hertha Berlin.

Here are five things we learnt about the Bundesliga this weekend: 

Thiago to the rescue

“Thiago or nothing!” was Pep Guardiola’s single demand at the start of his three-year reign as Bayern’s head coach in 2013 and sure enough, Thiago Alcantara was signed for 25 million euros ($28.5m) from Barcelona.

Thiago’s well-timed slide into the penalty area on Saturday saw the midfielder score to seal Bayern’s crucial 2-1 win at Mainz.

It was his first goal of the season and the win moved Bayern up to second in the table and halved Dortmund’s lead to two points.

It was a far from polished display and after Leon Goretzka gave Bayern a first-half lead, sloppy defending allowed Mainz to equalise before Thiago’s winner.

“We are making life hard for ourselves, especially when we concede a goal just after the break,” admitted right-back Joshua Kimmich.

“We certainly didn’t set off any fireworks with that performance.”

However, sparks are expected to fly when Bayern play Dortmund away in a fortnight.

– ‘Naive’ Dortmund –

Dortmund threw away two points on Saturday, and the chance for a seventh straight win, when Hertha Berlin forward Salomon Kalou converted a 91st-minute penalty to seal a 2-2 draw.

Dortmund lived dangerously in the final ten minutes as Berlin pair Davie Selkie and Kalou both had clear chances before the spot-kick in added time.

“We were naive in the last ten minutes,” admitted Dortmund captain Marco Reus.

Sancho, 18, was again outstanding. In nine league games, he has played a hand in 11 goals, scoring four and setting up seven more.

The English teenager took over the scoring duties from injured Paco Alcacer, Dortmund’s striker who has hit seven goals in four league games.

– ‘This damages football’ –

Having beaten Bayern in Berlin and earned a draw at Dortmund on Saturday, Hertha are sixth in the table and punching above their weight under head coach Pal Dardai.

However, their fans let the club down at Dortmund when 200 ‘Ultras’ went on the rampage in the away block, where fighting with police resulted in 45 casualties.

from World Soccer Talk https://ift.tt/2PAaoR7