Munich
Robert Lewandowski set a new record for the first half of a Bundesliga season on Sunday by netting his 21st league goal of 2020/21 as leaders Bayern Munich went four points clear with a 2-1 win over Freiburg. Lewandowski’s early strike was cancelled out by a Nils Petersen equaliser before Thomas Mueller grabbed Bayern’s late winner having earlier set up his team-mate’s record-breaking goal. Bayern, the only top five club to win this weekend, ended Freiburg’s five-match winning streak in the league. ‘We were a bit lucky, but I’m happy with the result and now we have to continue on this path against Augsburg and Schalke,’ said Bayern coach Hansi Flick with one eye on next week’s two league games. With a game in hand, Lewandowski has broken Gerd Mueller’s record of 20 goals in 17 matches for the first half of a German league season set in 1968/69. Lewandowski, FIFA’s best male player of 2020, has now scored nine goals in his last six league games. He is also on course to break Mueller’s all-time record of 40 goals in a single Bundesliga season from 1971/72. At exactly the same point during that record season, 49 years ago, Mueller had scored 17. Before kick-off, Bayern board member Oliver Kahn said the European champions will not sign any new players in this transfer window. – Bayern ‘wobbled’ – However, Bayern again looked vulnerable and jaded after a league defeat at Moenchengladbach and shock German Cup exit at second division Holstein Kiel.—AFP
