Bayern Munich beat Bavarian neighbours Augsburg 3-2 in a pulsating contest to keep the pressure on Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
Teenager Aleksandar Pavlovic – with his first Bayern goal – and Alphonso Davies put the visitors in command at the interval after Thomas Tuchel’s side had encountered a difficult start.
Harry Kane’s 23rd Bundesliga goal, sandwiched between a Ermedin Demirovic double, eventually proved the difference at a ground where Bayern had lost on their previous two league visits.
Augsburg were left to rue the presence of VAR twice in the opening 12 minutes much to the annoyance of home supporters.
A fifth-minute ball directed towards Demirovic struck the arm of Matthijs de Ligt and a penalty was awarded before a VAR check ruled contact was outside the box.
Augsburg thought they had then taken the lead when Elvis Rexhbecaj drilled past Manuel Neuer from a tight angle, but the midfielder had marginally strayed into an offside position.
Leon Goretzka volleyed wide of a post and Bayern’s improvement produced a 24th minute lead and a moment to remember for 19-year-old Pavlovic.
Raphael Guerreiro corner’s was not properly cleared by Phillip Tietz, and Pavlovic was alert to take a touch before lifting the ball into the roof of the net.
Bayern lost Kingsley Coman to injury and Augsburg had a chance to equalise when Rexhbecaj shot straight at Neuer.
Kane fired wide from a tight angle before Bayern doubled their lead in the fifth minute of stoppage time at the end of the first half.
Goretzka found Davies with a measured pass and the full-back, cutting in from the left flank, drilled home from 25 yards with his weaker right foot.
Augsburg were not finished though and halved the deficit after 52 minutes when Kevin Mbabu sped down the right.
Mbabu delivered an accurate cross for top scorer Demirovic to guide his header beyond Neuer and into the bottom left-hand corner.
Kane restored Bayern’s two-goal cushion six minutes later, rolling home Jamal Musiala’s pass into an empty net.
The offside flag was initially raised, but the goal stood after VAR intervention with the final touch coming off an Augsburg defender.
Bayern almost increased their lead nine minutes from time when Leroy Sane released substitute Mathys Tel and the substitute struck the post.
There was drama to the end as Neuer saved Sven Michel’s penalty and Demirovic converted another spot-kick in the fourth minute of stoppage time, but Bayern held on to make the short trip home with three precious points.
PSG's latest Ligue 1 title arrives as Monaco lose to Lyon
Paris Saint-Germain have been crowned as Ligue 1 champions after Lyon overcame Monaco 3-2 on Sunday.
A 4-1 midweek win over Lorient ensured that one more victory would be enough for Luis Enrique's team to get over the line, but PSG failed to get the job done themselves when they faced relegation-threatened Le Havre on Saturday.
That game was the 700th match of the QSI era at PSG, and the club's 1,900th in France's top flight.
However, PSG's wait to win their third straight title did not last long, as less than 24 hours later, Lyon – who will face the Parisians in the final of the Coupe de France at the end of May – came out on top in a topsy turvy encounter with second-placed Monaco.
Substitute Malick Fofana was the matchwinner for Lyon, and ultimately the player who handed the title to PSG.
Wissam Ben Yedder had put Monaco ahead in the opening minute, but quickfire goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Said Benrahma turned the match on its head before half-time.
Ben Yedder netted his second to restore parity on the hour mark, and thought he had sealed his hat-trick when he volleyed in from a free-kick, only to have strayed offside.
With only a win good enough for Monaco to stay in the fight, the visitors were then caught out in the 84th minute, with Fofana racing onto Lacazette's throughball and finishing calmly.
After a dismal start to the season, relegation looked a real possibility for Lyon, but they are now, with three games remaining, still in with a shout of qualifying for Europe.
PSG on the other hand now have 12 Ligue 1 titles to their name, with 10 of those coming under QSI's ownership. Aside from the COVID-impacted 2019-20 season, five of their last six league titles have been secured before the start of May.
It also means Luis Enrique remains in the running for a treble in his first season at the club, with PSG taking on Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League semi-finals next week.
Nuno encouraged by Forest's attitude and commitment, despite Man City defeat
Nuno Espirito Santo believes Nottingham Forest will "achieve what we want" by replicating the attitude demonstrated during their defeat by Manchester City.
Forest went down 2-0 against their title-chasing opponents at the City Ground, and remain just a point clear of the relegation zone with three games remaining.
Despite the defeat, the hosts produced a spirited performance against Pep Guardiola's side, while registering 14 shots on goal compared to 11 from the Citizens - meaning they had had more shots in both meetings this season.
Forest face already relegated Sheffield United, Chelsea and fellow strugglers Burnley in their final three games, and Nuno has seen enough to be confident of securing the Reds' Premier League status for another year.
"We played a good game, were compact, organised and had chances," he told Sky Sports. "We did a good job regarding how hard it is to play against Manchester City, and the players gave it a big go.
"We are disappointed with the result, but the encouragement comes from the way we work, how committed we are, and what we have ahead of us. This is more important.
"We stay positive, and we go for the next three games. With this attitude, we will achieve what we want."
Defender Moussa Niakhate echoes his manager's thoughts, adding: "We had three big chances in the first half, but we didn't score. That was the difference.
"Everybody is working hard. We can be proud. If we perform like this in the next three games, we'll stay up."
Kane gunning for Lewandowski's single-season Bundesliga goal record
Harry Kane has his eyes set on Robert Lewandowski's single-season Bundesliga goal record after scoring twice in Bayern Munich's 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt, though he knows he needs "to get a move on".
Kane scored in both halves on Saturday to take his tally to 42 goals this season across all competitions, also reaching the 400-goal mark at senior level for clubs and country.
The striker scored 280 of those goals for Tottenham, holding the honour of being the club's all-time leading scorer, while he is also the most prolific player in England history with 62 goals for the Three Lions.
With 35 goals in 31 Bundesliga appearances this season, Kane now has his eyes set on another piece of history.
Former Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski holds the record for the most goals scored in a single Bundesliga campaign, netting 41 times in 2020-21.
Asked about the possibility of breaking that record with just three games remaining in Bayern's league campaign, Kane said: "It's possible, but obviously I have to get a move on!
"I've got to maybe score a few goals next week. It's there, it's in touching distance.
"It depends on the last few games of course, but it was nice to add to it today and score a couple of goals to help the team."
Bayern next host Real Madrid in the first leg of a Champions League semi-final tie on Tuesday, before travelling to face Stuttgart on Saturday.
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