Harry Kane equalled Robert Lewandowski’s half-season Bundesliga goalscoring record with a late strike but it was Jamal Musiala who provided the real cutting edge in Bayern Munich’s 3-0 victory over 10-man Hoffenheim.
The England striker clipped home left-footed from 12 yards in added time for his 22nd goal in 16 games to match the man whose number nine shirt he inherited following his summer move from Tottenham. Kane now has next week’s home match against Werder Bremen to surpass Lewandowski’s tally by the halfway stage of the campaign.
But on a night when the death of Bayern great Franz Beckenbauer was marked with a number of tributes – the outside of the stadium emblazoned with the words ‘Danke Franz’ – it was the mercurial talents of the 20-year-old Germany international Musiala which lit up the Allianz Arena and moved his side within a point of leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
The first of his two goals secured a new record for the German champions, who have now scored in 65 successive home league fixtures to beat their own Bundesliga record set between 1970 and 1974.
Musiala opened the scoring in the first half with a shot from a narrow angle which goalkeeper Oliver Baumann could have dealt with better before converting a simpler 70th-minute effort to secure the result on a night of half-chances and missed opportunities.
Grischa Promel’s 74th-minute dismissal for a second yellow card ended the visitors’ hopes of staging a late comeback, although that appeared unlikely after failing to capitalise on their only good spell of the game midway through the second half when Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer marked his 500th club appearance with two good saves.
Bayern’s players all wore Beckenbauer’s number five during the warm-up, their match shirts also carried the words ‘Danke Franz’ and there was a period of silence before kick-off.
Once the game began, the hosts failed to create anything before they took the lead with their first shot in the 18th minute.
Hoffenheim were guilty of switching off as Bayern took a quick corner and that allowed Leroy Sane to picked out Musiala in space and he beat Baumann from the narrowest of angles via the far post.
It was Bayern’s 50th league goal in their 16th game and Hoffenheim’s 12th fixture without a clean sheet.
The only surprise was the home side’s failure to press home their dominance, the winter break appearing to have dulled their invention as all they could muster was a Raphael Guerreiro effort, teed up by Kane, which was comfortably turned around the post.
Hoffenheim’s best of limited opportunities saw Andrej Kramaric’s shot easily caught by Neuer.
Kane thought he had teed up Sane for Bayern’s second 10 minutes after half-time but it was ruled out for offside against the England captain, who continued to look one of Bayern’s biggest threats with a shot narrowly deflected wide.
Musiala then hit the post from distance with Thomas Muller unable to turn home the rebound and Konrad Laimer and Alphonso Davies were both denied by Baumann as Bayern began to ramp up the pressure.
But they were almost made to pay for not taking their chances as Neuer was forced into two great saves, first from Maximilian Beier’s close-range header and then Kramaric as he raced through on goal.
Even when Neuer was beaten by Beier’s volley, the ball crashed against the crossbar and that was to prove even more costly.
Musiala doubled his tally by converting Sane’s return pass and Kane grabbed his customary goal late on.
Moyes to leave West Ham at end of season
West Ham have confirmed that David Moyes will leave the club at the end of the season when his contract expires.
It comes after reports on Monday that former Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui agreed a deal to take over from the Scot.
Moyes, who has overseen 260 games so far during his two spells with the club, guided West Ham to their first European trophy since 1965 when they beat Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final in 2023.
In a club statement, Moyes said: “I have enjoyed four and a half brilliant years at West Ham, and the club is in a stronger position than when I returned back in 2019.
“When I joined West Ham for a second time, the club was one place above the relegation zone, and it has been a terrific journey to have achieved three consecutive seasons in Europe.
“I would like to thank all the players for their support, and all the success they have achieved over the last four and a half years.
“I have really enjoyed working with everyone at West Ham, and I would like to thank the Board for giving me the opportunity to manage this great club.
“I wish my eventual successor, the directors, the players, the staff, the fans, and everybody at West Ham, all the very best for the future.”
This season, Moyes has come under increasing pressure after a poor run of form, including a 5-0 thrashing by Chelsea on Sunday.
However, after saving West Ham from relegation in both stints at the club, first between November 2017 and May 2018 and then from November 2019, Moyes has overseen three successive European campaigns.
With two games left of the campaign, Moyes boasts a record of 111 from his 260 matches, with a win percentage of 44.7 per cent in all competitions over both spells in charge.
Ten Hag hits back at Mourinho dig over Man United board backing
Erik ten Hag has hit back at Jose Mourinho after the former Manchester United manager said he did not get the same level of support as the Dutchman.
Mourinho, who spent two and a half years in charge of United, suggested in an interview with the Telegraph that he did not have the same backing in the transfer market, or the same level of "trust" instilled in him as Ten Hag.
The former Ajax manager recently spoke to Sky Sports about failing to sign stars like Harry Kane, with the club instead choosing to invest in younger players with potential, like Rasmus Hojlund.
Ten Hag is facing an uncertain future at the club with just one year left on his contract following a disappointing second campaign. New co-owner Jim Ratcliffe has given no guarantees that he will keep his post next season.
Now, Ten Hag has responded to Mourinho’s claims, stating that the Portuguese coach was the only manager after Alex Ferguson to be given backing by the board.
Speaking to ESPN Brazil, Ten Hag said: "Apart from Mourinho, the manager didn't get the players they wanted, and that is what you need.
"I am confident we will achieve our goals, but it is a tough competition. It is not a two-horse race anymore.
"There are seven, eight [teams in the Premier League] who all go for the title, who all have very good squads. So if you want to go to the title, you have to construct that squad."
PSG not obsessed with scoring twice against Dortmund - Luis Enrique
Paris Saint-Germain lost their Champions League semi-final first leg 1-0 to Borussia Dortmund last Wednesday, but that does not mean they will go all out to score twice in the return game, manager Luis Enrique said on Monday.
The Ligue 1 champions overturned a one-goal deficit against Barcelona in the quarter-finals, winning 4-1 in the second leg, but PSG are prepared to take the game with Dortmund to extra time if that is what is needed.
"The aim isn't to win by two goals, but to win, if you think you have to score two goals, that seems like a big target," Luis Enrique told a press conference ahead of Tuesday's game in Paris.
"We just want to play and score. If we score in the 89th minute, it will carry on. We don't need to score right away, we just want to win the game.
The Spaniard wants his side concentrated on all aspects of their game, not only in attack, and a goal from the Germans won't be the end of the world.
"You could score twice in two minutes, but you could also concede a goal," he added.
"We have to be 100 per cent focused on attack and defence. If we concede a goal, it is not serious, we have to stay calm. If we score twice very quickly, our opponents will have to react.
"It will be an even game with a high level of play on and off the ball, so it will be tough for both teams."
Since last week's loss, Luis Enrique has declared on more than one occasion that PSG will win the return game, saying: "That is the only sentence I know in French, 'on va gagner' we are going to win.
"It is a sentence I like, and I always think my team will win, so that is what I say."
PSG have home advantage for the second leg, and Luis Enrique has no doubt that the Parc des Princes will once again be a driving force for his team.
"I think the role of the fans will be vital, as it has been throughout the season," the manager said.
"We have a total guarantee that the fans will be fully behind us as they have been all year, particularly when we need them, and this isn't a normal thing.
"We will all be together, and I hope we can celebrate a victory and a place in the final."
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