Bayern Munich sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic warned there can be "no more excuses" after defeat at Augsburg heaped pressure on head coach Julian Nagelsmann.

After three consecutive Bundesliga draws, Bayern were looking to get back on track in Saturday's Bavarian derby, but a 1-0 loss has compounded the team's domestic troubles.

It was only a first league loss of the season, but Bayern have now gone four games without winning in the competition, and the team that last season clinched a 10th consecutive title are in a mini-crisis.

It remains to be seen whether it escalates beyond that, or whether Nagelsmann succeeds in getting the team back to form, but Salihamidzic tellingly questioned the performance as much as the result.

His verdict was that Bayern "can't win in the Bundesliga like that", urging the team to show "discipline, greed and physicality", clearly suggesting they were lacking in each area.

Salihamidzic told German broadcaster Sky Sport: "We didn't finish the situations, several situations that we had, didn't finish in a concentrated manner, didn't play through to the end with a certain greed of wanting to score goals; and we also allowed a few chances against us, didn't defend those situations to the end, and we can't win in the Bundesliga like that."

Salihamidzic, a former Bayern player, said the current side are showing they have "brutal problems against teams that play against us physically, that knock our socks off, so to speak".

There has been no suggestion yet from Bayern that Nagelsmann's position is under threat, with early Champions League group wins against Inter and Barcelona surely helping his cause in that respect.

But he is facing scrutiny from outside the club, and the results in Germany's top flight are plainly causing unease in the Bayern hierarchy.

"If we don't bring that certain discipline, greed and physicality, then you can't win in the Bundesliga," Salihamidzic said. "Now there are no more excuses. Now we need wins."

Nagelsmann, the former RB Leipzig boss who is in his second season with Bayern, lost star striker Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona in the close season.

Lewandowski's de facto replacement, Sadio Mane, has managed five goals in 11 games across all competitions but has not found the net in his past five appearances.

As a collective, Bayern are not performing to their usual standard in the Bundesliga, and it falls to Nagelsmann to stop the rot.

Bayern's run of scoring in 87 consecutive Bundesliga games has been halted, and the coach has the international break in which to figure out what is so wrong.

Speaking after the final whistle in Augsburg, Nagelsmann said he was "thinking... about the situation, about myself, about everything".

Barcelona head coach Xavi believes "everyone is prepared" as he highlighted the importance of squad players after the 3-0 victory over 10-man Elche at Camp Nou.

Memphis Depay's strike and Robert Lewandowski's double saw Barca cruise to a fifth win in their opening six La Liga games, while adding a fourth consecutive league clean sheet.

The three points moved them top of the table ahead of Sunday's Madrid derby, and Xavi believes squad depth will be vital as Barcelona bid to land their first LaLiga title since the 2018-19 campaign.

"We are a broad squad, in which everyone trains well. Everyone is prepared and plugged in when the team needs it, and that's what's important," Xavi said.

"It's an atypical year with a tight schedule. We won't rest for a few weeks, and we need everyone. It's about making a group. Whoever plays, the team is up to the task.

"We have plenty to choose from, many options, and in the end the squads are the ones that win the titles, not the starting 11."

Two of Barcelona's best performers against LaLiga's bottom side were youngsters Alejandro Balde and Pedri, and Xavi was full of praise for the teenage pair.

"He [Pedri] is one of the best who's come through here. He understands the game, makes a difference with the pass, doesn't lose the ball. We have to take care of him," the 42-year-old Xavi said.

"They [Elche] did a lot of individual marking and Balde can generate superiority inside and out. It is surprising that an 18-year-old boy plays at that level.

"He's in great physical condition, and he's going to give us a lot."

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola trusts Jack Grealish "unconditionally" and has urged the England star to express himself more. 

Grealish scored his first goal of the season after 55 seconds in the 3-0 Premier League win over Wolves on Saturday.

Erling Haaland and Phil Foden added further goals as City stretched their unbeaten away run in the English top flight to 22 games – the longest such run in the club's league history.

Grealish thanked Guardiola for putting him in from the start after he was substituted in the 58th minute of the Champions League victory over Borussia Dortmund in midweek, but the City boss is not interested in gratitude from his players.

"I unconditionally trust all of them and I trust him unconditionally," Guardiola said. "He scored a goal and every time he had the ball, he was one against one when he took on the full-back all the time, all the time, all the time.

"But he has to play for himself and give the best of himself because that’s what I'm looking for.

"I'm happy with him, happy with the victory and Jack has an incredible personality to play and that's why I’m happy for him, but they don't have to say thank you. I just want the best for themselves every time they play – this is what we are looking for.

"He has to be who he is in the good moments and in bad moments that everyone has. He has to say, 'I am Jack Grealish, this is who I am, I go there with a good mentality and try to the best for myself and my team-mates'."

Guardiola was full of praise for former Borussia Dortmund defender Manuel Akanji, who made his Premier League debut at Molineux, hailing the 27-year-old's "perfect temperament".

"He was more than exceptional," Guardiola said. "He is so, so clever. Whether the play is short or long, when he goes, he goes, but not too much to give away a penalty or cause fouls.

"He is so aggressive to go across the opponent and has the perfect temperament to control the situation. Really, really good.

"And John [Stones] was brilliant at full-back, and I'm so happy he could do it two games in a row because we need him."

Son Heung-min ended his Premier League goal drought with a sensational second-half hat-trick as Tottenham routed Leicester City in a 6-2 rampage.

The South Korea forward paid the price pre-match for his underwhelming form this season as he was benched by Antonio Conte for his side's final game before the international break.

But last term's Golden Boot winner came off the bench after the break to steal the show in a remarkable performance that saw him net three goals inside a quarter-hour of play.

All three goals came with a degree of class, to ensure Spurs head into the international window on a winning note and leave Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers under increasing pressure.

 

Francesco Bagnaia produced "one of the best laps" of his career to set a new record and claim pole position for Sunday's Aragon Grand Prix.

The Ducati star is this weekend seeking to become the first rider to win five races in a row since Marc Marquez in 2019 and the first Italian since Valentino Rossi in 2008.

Bagnaia set an all-time lap record at the Gran Premio Animoca Brands de Aragon on Saturday with a time of 1:46.069 – 0.090 seconds faster than team-mate Jack Miller.

The 25-year-old was victorious at Aragon last year, snapping a run of nine wins in a row for Spanish riders, and looks in good shape to extend his superb form on Sunday.

"I'm very happy about the lap time because I think it's one of the best laps I've ever had," he said after qualifying. "Everything was perfect.

"I was just a bit scared in corner two because I was knowing that the best lap time was on the first attempt but on corner two the front tyre was a bit too cold. 

"When I entered I was feeling that the front was closing a bit. That was the only worry to think about because everything else was perfect."

Bagnaia has closed the gap on championship leader Fabio Quartararo from 91 points to just 30 with six race weekends to go.

Quartararo has claimed only one podium finish in his past four grands prix and will start Sunday's race in sixth after losing time on the final sector.

Asked what can be done to avoid a similar outcome happening again, the Yamaha rider joked: "There is no legal plan! It's like this, we know. 

"We used video analysis in the last corner to see, and we don't lose [time there]. So we know where the four tenths is being lost. If you add that up over 23 laps, it's quite a lot."

Bagnaia's future colleague Enea Bastianini finished third in qualifying to continue his strong run since the mid-season break.

Gresini rider Bastianini has finished on the podium in four races this season, which is double the number managed last season.

Bagnaia pipped Bastianini to victory in a dramatic San Marino GP last time out, but he does intend to engage in any unnecessary battles this time around. 

"He's very fast," Bagnaia said of Bastianini. "I think if he has the chance to win tomorrow and if he gets away, I'm not going to go crazy trying to stay with him.

"Of course, it's important to bring back a lot of points, but it's also true that we're coming to a phase of the championship where it's essential to bring back results.

"I already made too many mistakes at the beginning of the year, so we have to understand that and try not to repeat them."

Bastianini is fourth in the overall standings, albeit 73 points behind leader Quartararo, but is happy with his performances in recent races.

"Since the summer break I've been stronger in the qualifying, but the reality is that I don't know why," he said.

"It's better for me and I think my feeling with the bike is fantastic from Silverstone. We have been fast in all the races and this is the most important for me. 

"The first row is important for me to do a great race. I have to manage the first part of the race well and at the end there is the possibility that the tyre will be destroyed."


PROVISIONAL GRID

1. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) – 1:46.069
2. Jack Miller (Ducati) +0.090s
3. Enea Bastianini (Gresini) +0.244s
4. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) +0.521s
5. Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) +0.577s
6. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) +0.733s
7. Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) +0.783s
8. Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) +0.842s
9. Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) +0.843s
10. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) +0.855s

Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann cut a frustrated figure after seeing his team lose at Augsburg, saying he must think about "everything".

A goal from Mergim Berisha just before the hour at Augsburg Arena condemned Bayern to their first defeat of the season.

However, it made it four games in the Bundesliga without a win for the defending champions, their longest period without tasting victory in the league since the 2001-02 season.

Speaking at a press conference alongside Augsburg boss Enrico Maassen after the game, Nagelsmann praised the victors, but believed his team should still have won the game.

"Congratulations to Augsburg and Enrico for their victory against us," he said. "If I look at the statistics I think we should win that game, if we properly defend that free-kick [that led to the goal].

"It was difficult to break them down after it went to 1-0."

Bayern had 19 shots to the hosts' 11; however, according to Opta, Augsburg shaded it in terms of expected goals, by 1.56 to 1.52.

Few visiting players shone on Saturday, and it was another struggle for Sadio Mane, who only had one shot at goal, fewer even than Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer (two) who came up for late set-pieces.

"I won't be talking about individual players here, I will speak to them directly," Nagelsmann said. "There's always a difference between what I tell you and what I tell the team."

Augsburg ended Bayern's record streak of 87 Bundesliga games with at least one goal, having done similar in 2014 when ending their Bavarian neighbours' previous record streak of 65 games with a goal.

That, naturally, led to questions about former striker Robert Lewandowski, who scored twice for Barcelona in their 3-0 win over Elche in LaLiga at the same time Bayern were losing at Augsburg.

On the question of missing a number nine, Nagelsmann quipped: "What will you do if I say 'yes' or if I say 'no'? We have the classic nine with [Eric Maxim] Choupo [Moting] and we subbed him in today.

"It doesn't matter what I say now. If I say 'no' you’ll say I don't see the problem, if I say 'yes' you’ll say we're missing Lewandowski."

At the end of the press conference, Nagelsmann added: "I'm thinking about all things. About the situation, about myself, about everything."

His opposite number was grateful for the kind words, and Maassen explained his team had won by taking risks.

Although Bayern had 10 shots to the hosts' two in the second half, Augsburg matched their efforts in the first 45 minutes when both recorded nine shots each.

"Thanks to Julian [for his congratulations]," Maassen said. "I'm very pleased with how my team played.

"We were willing to take risks, I told the team we could defend and maybe lose 1-0 or 2-0, or we could play high-risk. We could concede more goals, but we'd also have a chance to win, and you have to attack if you want to try and beat them, so we ran after plenty of balls.

"We gave away a lot of chances, but [goalkeeper Rafal] Gikiewicz was tremendous."

Youssoufa Moukoko became the youngest ever scorer in a Bundesliga Revierderby as his powerful header gave Borussia Dortmund a 1-0 win against Schalke.

At just 17 years and 301 days, it was the prodigious teenager who was the match-winner on Saturday at Signal Iduna Park, taking Dortmund top of the league.

His decisive intervention came in the 79th minute, to ensure the Black and Yellow's dominant efforts were not in vain against their stubborn visitors.

Coupled with Bayern Munich's surprise loss to Augsburg, the result sent Edin Terzic's men to the summit, albeit with fellow early high-flyers Union Berlin and Freiburg still to play this weekend.

The result also helped Dortmund to their longest winning streak against Schalke in over half a century, with four wins on the trot now, having previously achieved eight on the bounce between 1964 and 1967.

It did not come without a cost, however, after captain Marco Reus was stretchered off in the first half, in a potentially significant blow for Dortmund and Germany with the Qatar 2022 World Cup on the horizon.

Barcelona went top of LaLiga as a Memphis Depay strike and Robert Lewandowski's double saw them cruise to a 3-0 victory against 10-man Elche at Camp Nou.

Elche captain Gonzalo Verdu was sent off after just 14 minutes, before Lewandowski and Depay put Xavi’s side 2-0 up at the break.

Lewandowski grabbed his second of the game after the interval to make it 11 goals in all competitions since his arrival from Bayern Munich as Barca eased to victory.

Victory continued Barca's unbeaten start to the domestic season as they moved top ahead of Sunday's Madrid derby.

Verdu was dismissed for cynically dragging down Lewandowski after Frenkie de Jong put the striker through on goal.

Edgar Badia made numerous saves to keep the hosts out, but the Catalans eventually capitalised on their numerical advantage with 34 minutes gone when Lewandowski tapped in Alejandro Balde's cross.

Depay made it 2-0 soon after, lashing into the roof of the net after bamboozling John Donald with a brilliant turn.

Barca thought they were three up before the break when Pedri bundled in, but the midfielder was offside in the build-up.

Lewandowski scored his second just after half-time, rifling into the bottom-left corner after the ball fell to him in the box. 

The Poland international nearly had his hat-trick when seeing a drive saved by the legs of Badia, before skimming the crossbar with another attempt.

But those misses mattered little as Barca eased to another win.

Son Heung-min was dropped to the bench for Tottenham's Premier League game against Leicester City on Saturday.

The South Korea forward was the joint-top scorer in the English top flight last season with 23 goals – level with Mohamed Salah – but has failed to build on that momentum this term.

Son has not scored in his six league appearances, registering just one assist, while no player has registered more shots without finding the net (17).

Head coach Antonio Conte, who said no player was "undroppable" following Spurs' Champions League defeat by Sporting CP in midweek, opted to name the forward on the bench for the visit of Leicester.

Dejan Kulusevski started, with Ryan Sessegnon, Davinson Sanchez and Clement Lenglet also included. Cristian Romero and Emerson Royal dropped to the bench, with Ben Davies not included in the squad.

Rio Ferdinand has warned this season's Premier League title battle already appears to be "a one-horse race" due to Erling Haaland's fast start to life at Manchester City.

Haaland made it 11 goals in seven league games for City – and 14 in 10 overall – in Saturday's routine 3-0 victory over Wolves, with Jack Grealish and Phil Foden also scoring.

Those 11 top-flight goals have come from just 27 shots and an expected goals (xG) value of 6.5, highlighting just how lethal the 22-year-old has been for his new club.

City are two points clear of second-placed Arsenal, who face Brentford on Sunday, after winning five and drawing two of their opening seven top-flight outings this term.

Liverpool, City's most realistic title challengers this season, are already eight points behind with a game in hand following a slow start to their campaign.

And former Manchester United defender Ferdinand believes Pep Guardiola's men are good value to make it three Premier League titles in a row and a fifth in six seasons.

"It's ominous for everyone else. It's looking like a one-horse race [for the title]," Ferdinand told BT Sport. 

"They're only going to get stronger. Haaland has hit the ground like a racehorse. He's taken everybody else's game up a level. 

"Grealish answered the critics in a wonderful way with a good performance and a goal. Kyle Walker is coming back. 

"So all things are looking positive for them. There will be bumps in the road for every team but this is looking good."

With his strike at Molineux, where Wolves had Nathan Collins sent off at 2-0 down, Haaland is the first ever player to score in each of his first four away Premier League games.

The Norway international now has 100 goals in his past 99 games in all competitions for Borussia Dortmund and City.

On the basis of what he has witnessed so far, Ferdinand backed Haaland to set a new Premier League goals record for a single season.

That is an accolade shared by Alan Shearer and Andy Cole, who scored 34 goals in the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons respectively, with those campaigns spanning 42 matches.

"He's on the right track. I'm saying 35 [goals]," Ferdinand said. "He's got the ability to break records as he's in a team that absolutely dominates. He's got the hunger and desire."

Asked if Haaland has a shot of pipping the likes of Karim Benzema to win the Ballon d'Or, Ferdinand said: "I'd say he's in contention. 

"If he carries on this form, if City win the Champions League, there's no question, there won't be anybody who can get near him. 

"He scored with his first touch today. He wasn't involved in the game but he doesn't care about that."

Bayern Munich suffered a shock defeat at Augsburg, going down 1-0 to make it four games without a win in the Bundesliga.

A second-half goal from Mergim Berisha was enough to give Enrico Maassen's team the win over their Bavarian neighbours on Saturday.

Julian Nagelsmann's Bayern looked listless, creating several half chances but proving unable to beat the inspired Rafal Gikiewicz in the Augsburg goal. Manuel Neuer went as close as anyone for Bayern, the goalkeeper sent forward in the closing moments and seeing Gikiewicz palm away his powerful header.

The defending Bundesliga champions head into the international break having not won a league game since their 7-0 thrashing of Bochum on August 21.

The first real chance came when Florian Niederlechner eased Matthijs de Ligt out of the way when chasing a long bail before hitting his shot into the ground, making it an easy save for Manuel Neuer.

Gikiewicz at the other end denied Sadio Mane and Leroy Sane with smart stops, before Niederlechner tested Neuer after Dayot Upamecano headed the ball straight to the Augsburg forward.

The visitors should have taken the lead in the 33rd minute when a neat move from the left ended with Thomas Muller laying the ball off to Jamal Musiala, but the youngster could only steer his effort wide of Gikiewicz’s left-hand post.

The best chance of the first half fell to Augsburg though, with Ermedin Demirovic playing in Iago down the left. His cross found an unmarked Maximilian Bauer in the middle of the penalty area, but the centre-back sent his header over the bar.

It was still somewhat against the run of play when the hosts took the lead in the 59th minute, with a long free-kick finding Iago at the far post, and he guided the ball into the middle with his knee, allowing Berisha to calmly slot home low to Neuer's left.

Muller should have equalised for Bayern straight away when played in down the right by Sane, but his shot was deflected behind by the excellent Gikiewicz. The goalkeeper saved again from Sane when through on goal with just under 20 minutes remaining, and then at the death from Neuer, as he preserved a clean sheet to deny the frustrated visitors.

Jack Grealish thanked Pep Guardiola after scoring his first goal of the season in Manchester City's 3-0 win at Wolves, admitting critics were right to question his output.

The England international opened his account for the campaign after 55 seconds at Molineux when he applied the finishing touch to Kevin De Bruyne's perfectly timed cross.

Grealish, who netted six times during his maiden season at City after moving from Aston Villa for £100million, was substituted in the 58th minute of the Champions League victory over Borussia Dortmund in midweek.

He was grateful to be thrown in from the start once more, netting his first goal since a 2-2 draw with West Ham in May, and hopes to continue to repay Guardiola's faith.

"It was a long time coming and nice to get off the mark," Grealish told BT Sport. "Rightly so, people have been asking questions, I should be scoring more and getting more assists.

"I am always going to have people talking about me with the money that was spent on me, but all my career I haven't scored enough goals. I do want to add that to my game.

"It is nice when Pep defends me. He has been brilliant with me. I probably have to thank him because he gave me the opportunity today after my performance on Wednesday because it probably wasn't the best. I am thankful to him."

Erling Haaland doubled City's lead before Wolves had Nathan Collins sent off in the 33rd minute. A strike from Phil Foden midway through the second half made sure of the points for the visitors.

Guardiola saluted "an incredible victory" for his side as they moved top of the Premier League table, with Arsenal not playing Brentford until Sunday, and he also praised Grealish's performance.

"The game started really well for us with the two goals and the red card," the City manager said. "After the Champions League, to come here with the quality they have – they can keep the ball and transitions are fast – it was an incredible victory.

"We struggled a lot after half-time until Phil's goal, so a lot of credit to Wolves.

"Jack played really good. He was strong and he made a good goal coming in. Hopefully, he can make a good international performance and come back fit."

The international break means Guardiola will see many of his players, such as Grealish, join up with their countries in the coming week, with City back in action when they face Manchester United on October 2.

"Fingers crossed, all the players come back fit," Guardiola said. "It is important for them ahead of the World Cup, but hopefully they come back good, ready for the derby."

Andy Murray said it would be "really special" to get one last chance to share a tennis court with Roger Federer after the Swiss star announced his retirement.

The upcoming Laver Cup in London will be Federer's farewell event after he admitted defeat in his battle to overcome a knee problem.

Even Murray is unsure how much of an active part Federer will be able to play in London next week, but he would love to form a doubles alliance with the 20-time grand slam winner.

For many years, Murray was considered a part of a 'Big Four' in men's tennis alongside Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. They were the quartet who dominated the latter stages of the grand slams and the most prestigious regular tour events.

It latterly became known as a 'Big Three' as Murray fell away due to injury, also proving unable to keep pace with the extraordinary major-winning standards set by Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.

Federer led the head-to-head 14-11 against Murray, with the Scot getting his biggest win over the Swiss in the 2012 Olympic Games final at Wimbledon.

Three-time slam champion Murray said of Federer: "Obviously he was an amazing player. I was lucky to get to compete against him in some of the bigger matches, in the biggest tournaments, on the biggest stages in our sport.

"At the time I probably didn't appreciate it as much but looking back it's pretty amazing. It's incredible what he achieved and also what Rafa and Novak have done as well."

Federer announced his retirement on Thursday, and while Murray said that marked "a sad, sad day for the sport", he was keen to celebrate "an unbelievable career".

There is an irony about Murray wishing Federer well in retirement, given Federer did likewise with Murray in January 2019, when it seemed the former Wimbledon and US Open champion was destined to hang up his racket. A new hip has allowed Murray to unexpectedly continue on tour.

Murray said of Federer: "The longevity he's had and what he did, the way that he played the game, conducted himself, all of those things. All of the players respected him for that.

"I don't know how much he'll be able to play [at the Laver Cup], I haven't spoken to him about that, but maybe I get to share a court with him in doubles or something like that, and that would be really special."

Phil Mickelson is convinced the LIV Golf Invitational Series is "here to stay" and the PGA Tour's dominance has come to an end.

The 52-year-old is one of several high-profile players to move from the PGA Tour to the new controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf, including Bryson DeChambeau and Open champion Cameron Smith.

The PGA Tour has been rocked by LIV Golf's emergence and since introduced numerous changes to retain players, such as increasing purses and encouraging its biggest names to play together more often. It has also suspended defectors from its tournaments.

But Mickelson believes the PGA Tour will have to come to terms with losing players to LIV Golf, telling reporters: "The PGA Tour, for the last 20 or 30 years have had all the best players in the world.

"That will never be the case again. LIV Golf is here to stay."

The bitter dispute led to some defectors suing their former tour, but Mickelson believes cooperation between the two rival tours would be beneficial for the sport.

"The best solution is for us to come together," added Mickelson after a two-under-par opening round of the ongoing LIV Golf tournament in Chicago.

"I think that the world of professional golf has a need for the old historical 'history of the game' product that the PGA Tour provides. I think that LIV provides a really cool, updated feel that is attracting a lot younger crowds.

"Both are good for the game of golf and the inclusion of LIV Golf in the ecosystem of the golf world is necessary. As soon as that happens, we all start working together. It's going to be a really positive thing for everyone."

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