Sebastien Haller scored twice as Borussia Dortmund moved to the Bundesliga summit with a crucial 3-0 win over Augsburg.

Julian Brandt was also on target at WWK Arena as Edin Terzic's side leapfrogged Bayern Munich at the top, after the champions were beaten 3-1 by RB Leipzig on Saturday.

Haller opened the scoring just before the hour mark and doubled the lead with six minutes remaining, before Brandt capped the win in stoppage time to secure a two-point advantage.

Victory over Mainz next Saturday would secure a first title in 11 years, while 14th-place Augsburg's top-flight future is uncertain with the Fuggerstadter just two points ahead of 16th-place Bochum heading into the final weekend.

Julian Nagelsmann is keen to keep in-demand defender Benjamin Pavard at Bayern Munich after he scored twice in the Bundesliga leaders' thrilling 5-3 win over Augsburg on Saturday.

Mergim Berisha opened the scoring for Augsburg early on, but Bayern surged into a 4-1 lead by the break as Joao Cancelo and Leroy Sane struck either side of Pavard's brace.

While Berisha sealed his own double after the interval and Irvin Cardona also netted late on, Alphonso Davies' goal ensured Bayern sealed a fourth successive win in relative comfort.

Last November, Pavard discussed the possibility of leaving Bayern for a new project, and with the France international's contract due to expire next year, he has been linked with Barcelona, Inter and Manchester United.

Having seen the 26-year-old mark his 150th competitive Bayern outing with his first double for the club, Nagelsmann said: "Of course I want to keep Benjamin at Bayern. 

"Playing in that position that he loves as a centre-back… he played very well today. So yes, I'd love to keep him."

Despite seeing Augsburg put to the sword in a typically ruthless Bayern performance, Nagelsmann was not impressed with some aspects of the hosts' display.  

"I'm happy with the result. It's job done today, that was important," Nagelsmann said.

"It was very similar to the game in the DFB-Pokal against Augsburg [a 5-2 win in October], it was a bit chaotic right from the start. We conceded the goal right away.

"Then we played really well for 30 minutes, everything was done well on our offensive side. In the second half, we did not have as much control or pressure any more.

"The game was a little bit too open in my opinion, we could have scored a couple more goals, but the result is above everything. 

"Not everything was perfect on the offensive or defensive side, but all in all, it's all about the three points."

Benjamin Pavard helped himself to a first-half double and Joao Cancelo scored his first Bayern Munich goal as the Bundesliga leaders beat Augsburg 5-3 in a thriller.

Mergim Berisha's early goal stirred Bayern into life at the Allianz Arena, where they were out of sight at half-time.

Cancelo equalised before Pavard struck twice in his 150th competitive game for the club and Leroy Sane made it 4-1 at the interval.

Berisha pulled one back with a penalty, but Alphonso Davies restored Bayern's three-goal advantage.

Irvin Cardona then struck in stoppage time for Augsburg, but Bayern had already done enough to move three points clear of Borussia Dortmund ahead of their rivals' Revierderby against Schalke later on Saturday.

Berisha stunned the champions by opening the scoring in the second minute, taking one touch to turn Cancelo too easily before firing home from inside the box.

Cancelo made amends by rifling into the far corner of the net with his right foot after turning Mads Pedersen inside out and Pavard put Bayern in front with a close-range volley four minutes later after Sadio Mane, making his first start since November, set him up with an overhead kick.

Pavard struck again with a spectacular finish, propelling himself up with his left foot and firing in with his right 10 minutes before the break.

Sane got in on the act on the stroke of half-time by heading into an empty net after Mane's cross had struck Maximilian Bauer and goalkeeper Rafal Gikiewicz before looping into his path.

Berisha reduced the deficit from the spot after Matthijs de Ligt was adjudged to have upended Cardona on the hour-mark.

Ruthless Bayern remained in command, though, and Davies finished clinically at the back post after Cancelo picked him out with a brilliant cross.

Cardona capitalised on slack Bayern defending to turn in a Ruben Vargas cross right at the end, but a thrilling contest had long since been settled.

 

 

Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann felt his side "should have scored more" despite their rampant 5-2 away victory over Augsburg in the second round of the DFB-Pokal.

Bayern were behind within nine minutes after Mads Pedersen fired the hosts in front, but a double from Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and a smart Joshua Kimmich finish put the Bundesliga champions 3-1 ahead.

Dayot Upamecano's unfortunate own goal gave Augsburg hopes of a comeback, but Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies both struck late to ensure Bayern's progression into the third round of a competition they have won 20 times, 14 more than any other side.

Despite scoring five against Augsburg, Nagelsmann wanted his side to be even more ruthless, telling ZDF: "It's a classic cup game.

"The team created enough chances to make the game clearer earlier on, but unfortunately we missed. 

"There were many situations in which we should have scored more goals."

Nagelsmann was thankful for his side's improvement after finding themselves a goal down early on, particularly their dominant period after half-time which saw Kimmich and Choupo-Moting make it 3-1 with 53rd and 59th-minute goals.

"We didn't have a good start, we were very sluggish and didn't accept many duels," Nagelsmann said.

"The 20 minutes after half-time were very, very good. Physically we were on the same level."

When asked why Bayern struggled at the start of the match, Nagelsmann replied: "It's not that easy to play against a team that plays every ball straight ahead.

"It's always a balancing act. Do you play football, or do you play the ball in the opposing half?

"We didn't always make the right decision."

An Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting double and goals from Joshua Kimmich, Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies helped Bayern Munich to a 5-2 comeback victory over Augsburg to seal their place in the DFB-Pokal third round.

Mads Pedersen put Augsburg in front, but Choupo-Moting scored either side of Kimmich's beautiful finish to put the Bundesliga champions 3-1 up.

An own goal from Dayot Upamecano caused some fears of a Bayern collapse, but Musiala and Davies struck late to make sure of the victory.

Bayern's return to form continues as they reach the next round of a competition they have won on 20 occasions, 14 more than any other team.

The hosts started brightly and took the lead after nine minutes, Pedersen rifling superbly into the bottom right corner from 25 yards out.

Davies missed a great chance to equalise when he fired straight at Tomas Koubek, before the Augsburg goalkeeper also denied efforts from Musiala and Serge Gnabry.

However, Koubek did not cover himself in glory for Bayern's leveller, as Choupo Moting's drive from a tight angle sneaked in at the near post to make it 1-1.

Koubek somewhat redeemed himself shortly after, making a brilliant save to paw away Sadio Mane's goal-bound shot as the visitors put increasing pressure on the Augsburg defence.

Gnabry hit the bar with a deflected effort just after half-time, before Kimmich's curler from the edge of the box flew in to give Bayern the lead.

Choupo-Moting then took advantage of a defensive mix-up to smash home Bayern's third, seemingly putting the match to bed.

And despite Augsburg pulling a goal back when Upamecano diverted into his own net, Davies produced some sublime skill to tee up Musiala to bend home before the Canadian turned goalscorer as Bayern made sure of their progress.

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".

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."

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.

Another Bundesliga campaign kicks off on Friday after a frantic close-season saw Germany's top flight robbed of its two biggest stars.

Bayern Munich superstar Robert Lewandowski left for Barcelona, while fellow striking sensation Erling Haaland departed Borussia Dortmund as expected for Manchester City.

What do these moves do to shake up the Bundesliga, then? Perhaps not an awful lot...

Stats Perform AI has predicted the outcome of the coming campaign, estimating the likelihood of teams finishing in each position informed by their expected results in each match.

These are calculated using betting odds and Stats Perform's team rankings – based on historical and recent team performances – and have thrown up some interesting results, even if the title race is a little too predictable.

MANE TO MAINTAIN BAYERN DOMINANCE

Lewandowski's exit was offset by the arrival of Sadio Mane at Bayern, and Stats Perform AI expects Julian Nagelsmann's side to again charge clear at the top of the table.

Bayern have won 10 consecutive titles, so perhaps it is no surprise they are given an 84.93 per cent chance of taking the trophy home again in May.

That figure makes Bayern the most likely champions across all of Europe's top five leagues, with nearest contenders Dortmund only in with a 6.01 per cent shot.

RB Leipzig (4.64 per cent), Bayer Leverkusen (3.38 per cent) lead a group of 10 other clubs who are given at least a slim hope of winning the championship.

For six teams – including 2003-04 champions Werder Bremen and 2006-07 victors Stuttgart – their title tilt is over before a ball has even been kicked.

 

SCRAMBLE OUTSIDE THE TOP FOUR

Unfortunately, the top-four tussle appears as predictable as Bayern's coronation.

The champions will of course occupy one Champions League spot – their 99.53 per cent chance again the greatest across the top five leagues – while Dortmund (76.78 per cent), Leipzig (72.2 per cent) and Leverkusen (62.98 per cent) also look secure, forecast second, third and fourth respectively.

That means a return to Europe's elite competition for all of those who have qualified this year, even if Leipzig have leapfrogged Leverkusen.

Stats Perform AI suggests Union Berlin (4.66 per cent) and Freiburg (8.22 per cent) – one and three points outside the top four last term – have missed their shot, with Borussia Monchengladbach (22.94 per cent) and Eintracht Frankfurt (21.5 per cent) the most likely gatecrashers despite last season finishing 10th and 11th.

Eintracht are also in the Champions League this term after winning the Europa League, but they are considered the team most likely to return to the second-tier competition (13.32 per cent).

There could be a real scrap for those final European places, though. All but four teams have at least a 1.0 per cent likelihood of qualifying for the Europa Conference League, with title favourites Bayern one of those four.

 

SCHALKE AND WERDER FACE A FIGHT

Schalke and Werder – two of the great names of German football – have returned to the top flight following successful promotion campaigns in the 2. Bundesliga last season, but they face tricky first seasons back in the big time.

The ceiling for Schalke is a little higher, so Stats Perform AI has them finishing in the relegation play-off place in 16th.

This is despite two teams – Augsburg (14.02 per cent) and Werder (13.9 per cent) – being more likely to qualify for that play-off than Schalke (13.3 per cent).

Werder are ranked 17th, while the outlook for Augsburg is awful; 14th in the Bundesliga in 2021-22, they have a new coach in ex-Dortmund II boss Enrico Maassen and are considered a strong 38.19 per cent shot for relegation.

Bochum (30.84 per cent) are also in a little trouble, with Hertha Berlin (11.62 per cent) backed to pull away and finish 12th after their play-off scare last time out.

Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann says he is unsure why Leroy Sane has struggled for form this season, acknowledging that the winger has been far from his best in recent weeks.

However, Nagelsmann also hailed Sane's "incredible qualities' and backed him to improve, rejecting criticism of his frustrated reaction to being substituted in a 1-0 win over Augsburg.

Sane played 65 minutes of the Bundesliga leaders' hard-fought victory but managed just one shot and four touches in the visitors' penalty area before being replaced by Kingsley Coman.

A late penalty from Robert Lewandowski was enough to extend Bayern's unbeaten league run to seven games, but the former Manchester City winger's below-par display marked his fifth consecutive league game without a goal.

After the victory, the Bayern coach admitted he was perplexed by Sane's poor form but backed him to get back to his best and hailed the 26-year-old's "incredible" ability. 

"I like Leroy very much, as a person and as a player. Everyone knows that he has incredible qualities," Nagelsmann said.

"He is self-critical enough and knows himself that he hasn't recently played well. I don't know exactly why.

"He's had ups and downs throughout his career. I support him completely."

Sane has scored seven goals in 28 Bundesliga appearances this season, with only Lewandowski (32) and fellow winger Serge Gnabry (11) netting more often for the perennial champions. 

However, the latest of Sane's league goals came in a 1-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in mid-February, and the 26-year-old cut a frustrated figure when replaced against Augsburg, appearing to shake Nagelsmann's hand half-heartedly before making his way to the bench.

Nagelsmann, however, refused to criticise Sane for his reaction, and was keen to move swiftly on from the incident.

"I'm not angry, we don't have to make a headline out of it," Nagelsmann added.

Bayern are back in Champions League action on Tuesday as they attempt to recover from a 1-0 first-leg loss to Villareal when they welcome Unai Emery's team to Bavaria.

Sane has been in much better form on the European stage, recording six goals and six assists in the competition this season. Since Opta records began in 2003-04, those 12 goal contributions are the joint-most managed by a German player in one Champions League campaign, along with Mario Gomez in 2011-12 (12 goals, also playing for Bayern).

Bayern Munich restored their nine-point lead at the Bundesliga summit thanks to Robert Lewandowski's penalty in a late 1-0 win over Bavarian neighbours Augsburg.

The hosts were beaten 1-0 by Villarreal in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie in midweek and were frustrated for 82 minutes at Allianz Arena on Saturday.

Just when Bayern looked to be heading for a first league blank since January 2020, Lewandowski's header hit Reece Oxford's arm and the striker stepped up to convert from the spot.

Bayern have now won three league games in a row and retain a healthy lead over Borussia Dortmund, who beat Stuttgart 2-0 on Friday, ahead of the sides meeting in two weeks.

 

Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann says he is "happy" the Bundesliga leaders will not be stripped of their victory over Freiburg following their 12-man mix-up.

The German top-flight champions fielded an additional player briefly during Saturday's 4-1 league win, with Kingsley Coman staying on despite Nagelsmann making a double substitution.

Freiburg reluctantly lodged an appeal to the German Football Association (DFB) for their opponent to forfeit the result, though Nagelsmann may have been more preoccupied with a surprise midweek defeat.

Bayern were off the pace at Villarreal in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final as they fell to a 1-0 loss, but a positive decision for the Bavarian giants on the DFB's ruling was confirmed on Friday.

The league has decided to uphold the original result against Freiburg and the former RB Leizpig coach expressed his satisfaction after seeing the points preserved ahead of Saturday's game with Augsburg.

"I'm happy we keep the points," he told reporters at a pre-match news conference. "I think that's quite normal.

"What's important to me [is that] I'm in no way disappointed with Freiburg. The contest against the result has not changed that."

Bayern take a nine-point lead into their clash at Allianz Arena, but could well be more focused upon their return leg against Unai Emery's Villarreal in Europe.

Nagelsmann, however, says that both games are vital for him, laying out that he intends to rotate his side in order to help his squad find rhythm across two crucial games.

"We have a very important game on Tuesday, probably the most important game of the season," he stated. "But [in] the Bundesliga, we also have to give players some rhythm.

"We will certainly rotate on a few positions. We will let Niklas Sule play from start, we will let [Leon Goretzka] play from the start.

"Alphonso Davies will have a break and [we'll] give a couple [of other] players a little more rhythm for Tuesday.

"It's a very important game for us tomorrow that we are taking very seriously, and are determined and desperate to win."

One man expected to figure will be evergreen playmaker Thomas Muller, with the World Cup winner in line to feature against Augsburg.

If he does so, and if Bayern are victorious, the 32-year-old will become the first outfield player to amass 300 wins in the Bundesliga.

Promising United States striker Ricardo Pepi has joined Augsburg from FC Dallas for a reported €18million ($20m) fee plus add ons.

Pepi, 18, impressed for Dallas in the 2021 season as he scored 13 times in MLS – the joint-most ever managed by a teenager in the competition.

The forward is also the youngest player to ever score in consecutive World Cup qualifiers for the USA and has previously been linked to some of Europe's top clubs, such as Borussia Dortmund and Ajax.

But Pepi has opted to move to Augsburg, who have signed the talented teenager on a five-and-a-half-year contract, while holding the option to extend for a further year.

The transfer represents a club-record deal for Dallas as Pepi dethrones Alphonso Davies' move from Vancouver Whitecaps to Bayern Munich in 2018 as the most expensive outgoing homegrown player from MLS.

Upon confirmation of the deal on Monday, Pepi said: "Moving to Europe after the conclusion of the MLS season was my dream. 

"I believe FC Augsburg and the Bundesliga will prove the perfect settings for me to gain match practice at the top level as a youngster. 

"The efforts the FCA [Augsburg] club officials put in to sign me were really impressive. As a result, I felt right away that FCA was the right club for me. 

"I can't wait to meet my new teammates and I want to integrate into the team as quickly as possible. I can hardly wait to get going!"

Augsburg sit just a point above the relegation zone in the German top flight before they restart their Bundesliga campaign with a trip to Hoffenheim on Saturday.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's future is unclear having become frozen out.

The Gabon striker was stripped of the Arsenal captaincy last month and dropped by the club for disciplinary reasons and has not played since.

Aubameyang's future is a hot topic as the January transfer window opens.

TOP STORY - NEWCASTLE IN FOR JANUARY AUBA MOVE

Big-spending Newcastle have got in touch with Arsenal about a loan deal for outcast striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang claims The Mirror.

The Magpies want to sign 32-year-old Aubameyang on loan for the remainder of the season.

Newcastle would also look to sign Aubameyang, who is away at the African Cup of Nations, on a £20million off-season permanent deal.

 

ROUND-UP

- Teenage US international Ricardo Pepi is on the verge of joining Bundesliga club Augsburg claims Fabrizio Di Romano. The 18-year-old netted 13 goals for Dallas in the 2021 MLS season and is set for a medical on Sunday.

- Eddie Nketiah is being pursued by Bayer Leverkusen on a free transfer from Arsenal when his contract expires at the end of this season, reports The Sun.

- Sport reports that Brazilian giants Palmeiras are not interested in signing forward Philippe Coutinho as Barcelona try to shop him around in January.

- Axel Tuanzebe will join Napoli on loan from Manchester United until the end of the season, claims the Manchester Evening News. Tuanzebe is currently on loan at Aston Villa.

- The Sun claims that Manchester United's pursuit of Declan Rice has been boosted by West Ham's recent slide outside the Premier League top four.

Julian Nagelsmann and Thomas Muller vented their frustration at Bayern Munich's shock defeat to Augsburg by questioning the team's collective effectiveness in defensive situations.

Bayern were dominant for almost the entire match on Friday but still lost 2-1, with Mads Pedersen and Andre Hahn putting Augsburg 2-0 up before Robert Lewandowski pulled a goal back just before half-time.

While the second half was even more one-sided in Bayern's favour than the first, they did not exactly pepper Rafal Gikiewicz's goal, with the visitors' expected goals (xG) value only reaching a modest 1.4.

On the other hand, Augsburg scored twice from an xG value of just 0.6, highlighting just how clinical they were – though questions look set to be asked of the Bayern defence.

 

This was the fourth time in five matches – a run that includes a 5-0 defeat to Borussia Monchengladbach in the DFB-Pokal – Bayern have conceded at least twice in a match, while they have now let in 13 Bundesliga goals from 9.8 xG against.

Only Greuther Furth (8.6) and Hertha Berlin (6.6) have worse xG against differentials than Bayern (3.2) this season, and Opta's expected goals on target conceded (xGOT) data suggests Manuel Neuer is a big part of the problem, putting him at fault for roughly 3.4 goals – the fourth-worst in the division.

Neuer failed to keep out Hahn's header despite getting a hand to it on Friday, though Muller and Nagelsmann pointed the finger at the defence as a collective.

 

"The first half was bad, very bad and in the second half you could see that we wanted to turn it around, but maybe we didn't deserve that little bit of luck in front of goal," Muller told DAZN.

"This is a bitter setback for our confidence… [but] what wasn't good today should get better.

"I think when you have the feeling in every game that you can score three or four goals, you lose a bit of hunger defensively. We noticed that over and over again in the past few games."

Head coach Nagelsmann added: "We're conceding the goals the same way throughout the season.

"We discussed it yesterday, and today we conceded both goals the same way again. The opponent didn't really have any moments of brilliance and still scored two goals. It was the same against Frankfurt.

"I think the important thing is that if there's not much going on in attack in a game, you must be more stable at the back. One impacts the other. 

"Overall we didn't create enough and didn't have enough shots on goal."

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