Olise curler seals hard-fought Bayern victory in Wolfsburg | OneFootball

On a partly cloudy, seventeen-degree Saturday evening in the heart of Niedersachsen, VfL Wolfsburg (6-8-18, 16th) hosted FC Bayern München (26-5-1, 1st) in the second-last matchweek of their 2025/26 Bundesliga campaigns.

Wolfsburg walked into this match currently involved in a battle with FC St. Pauli and 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 for the relegation playoff spot; Wolfsburg played 32 matches with 26 points, St. Pauli 33 with 26 points, and Heidenheim 32 with 23 points. Because St. Pauli lost 1-2 to RB Leipzig earlier in the afternoon, a win for Wolfsburg would mathematically relegate Heidenheim and mean that a St. Pauli win by three or more against Wolfsburg on the final day would be the only way that Die Wölfe could be relegated.

Bayern, on the other hand, walked into this match in the completely opposite situation, with only one loss through 32 matches in the 2025/26 season and having already secured their thirty-fifth German championship title three weeks ago. Thirteen points clear of Borussia Dortmund with a match in hand, Die Roten are looking to finish this season strong - and the statistics showed that they were very likely to get three points out of this match, since they have defeated Wolfsburg in all of the last 23 Bundesliga meetings between the two.

The last time that Bayern lost to Wolfsburg was on 30. January 2015, a day that present-day Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking will remember very well as his side, in his then-first spell at the helm of the club, defeated Bayern 4-1 on a pair of goals from Bas Dost and Kevin De Bruyne. The only meeting this season between Bayern and Wolfsburg, however, ended 8-1 to the Bavarian side at Allianz Arena in January, with Daniel Bauer as coach of the visitors at the time.

This was the last home match for VfL Wolfsburg, and it came with a major pre-match announcement: the return of the Zinnenwappen as the full-time logo for the club for the first time since the 2001/02 season. Symbolising the workers, the history of the club, and the people that built the club to what it is today, the logo has been petitioned by fans to be brought back for two decades, and now returns as a key part of the club’s identity. In an announcement, VfL Wolfsburg also stated that due to the making of kits two years in advance, the Zinnenwappen will only appear on new uniforms starting in the 2027/28 season, and that the modernised logo will still appear on the 2026/27 uniform.

The match kicked off at Volkswagen Arena, and Wolfsburg wanted to ensure that they would put on a show in front of their faithful. Just four minutes in, Joakim Mæhle, along the left side of the Bayern half, would send a long ball into the centre of the box, met by a header from Adam Daghim. The Dane could not send it goalwards, instead directing the ball to the right where Vinícius Souza was placed. The Brazilian defensive midfielder attempted a free header goalwards, but Jonas Urbig blocked it with his forehead and Konrad Laimer then managed to clear it from danger.

Six minutes later, Wolfsburg would get another dangerous chance, as a Christian Eriksen through ball from the midfield would spring Daghim into an onside run on the left side of the Bayern penalty area. With Josip Stanišić in front of him, Daghim would aim towards the top-left corner, but the Croatian international blocked it with his left leg and a near-post corner would be awarded to the hosts. Eriksen’s near-post cross was headed by Denis Vavro, but well over the bar.

Daghim was heavily involved in creating chances for the hosts early on, and set up Dženan Pejčinović for another opportunity in the fourteenth minute. The 21-year-old German youth international could not get a shot off, however, as Kim Min-jae covered the space and forced a corner with a near-perfect sliding tackle. Eriksen’s short corner came back to him, but he was quickly stripped of the ball by Harry Kane - his teammate at Tottenham Hotspur FC in the Premier League between 2013 and 2020.

Bayern’s first shot on target would come in eighteenth minute, with Michael Olise playing a short corner to Jamal Musiala. Musiala would then power a shot from a difficult angle on the right side of the box at Kamil Grabara, who punched it to his left. Konstantinos Koulierakis jumped in front of Kane to prevent the Englishman from tapping in the rebound, and it would eventually go out of play for another corner after Denis Vavro blocked a cross from Tom Bischof.

That chance was enough for Bayern to gain momentum in the minutes that followed. Bischof would hit the crossbar on a shot from distance in the nineteenth minute, and Nicolas Jackson would follow with an onside run into the centre of the Wolfsburg penalty area before eventually tapping a right-footed attempt just wide of the right post.

Wolfsburg were not to be outdone easily, though, and set up a few more opportunities. Daghim, entering the right side of the box in the twenty-fifth minute, played the ball to Saël Kumbedi. With only Jonas Urbig to beat, Kumbedi decided to play the ball to his left to Christian Eriksen, who quickly got sandwiched between Kim and Bischof. Eriksen tried for a bicycle kick just moments later, with Bischof making the interception.

In the twenty-sixth minute, Kumbedi was clipped by Leon Goretzka on the right side of the Bayern third, and Mattias Jöllenbeck appeared to point to the box. The Wolfsburg supporters thought there was a penalty called, but Jöllenbeck corrected them by pointing to the edge of the area. The ensuing free kick would be blocked by the body of Goretzka and Bayern would ultimately clear it.

Bayern would counter just two minutes later, as in the centre of the box, Jackson would direct a hard shot bottom-centre, denied by the left leg of Grabara. The rebound exited the penalty area but landed to Stanišić, who, seeing Grabara down, blasted the rebound goalwards - the follow-through did not quite go according to plan, however, going a few metres wide of the right post.

Just past the half-hour mark, Kimmich would deliver a long ball into the centre of the box, with Olise darting into the space. The French international was then brought down by Koulierakis, with Jöllenbeck immediately pointing to the spot. Kamil Grabara guessed the wrong way on the spot kick, staying down the middle, but Kane blasted the ball well wide of the top-right corner for his first penalty miss of the season.

In the thirty-eighth minute, Wolfsburg would shift the momentum in their direction, generating another series of high-quality opportunities. Vavro powered a shot from long-range, denied by the right arm of a leaping Urbig; Eriksen would pounce on the rebound, curling the ball towards the bottom-right corner, but Urbig stretched out and quickly made a left-hand stop to force a corner to the hosts.

The last chance before halftime was from that of Joakim Mæhle, as the Danish international weaved his way into the centre of the box - Kim, Itō, and Bischof then sandwiched the Danish international, sending him to the ground but with the latter winning possession back. The halftime whistle would go shortly after, scoreless at the break with Wolfsburg proving to be a challenge for the Meisterschale winners.

Shots at the halftime break were 15-5 to VfL Wolfsburg, 5-1 on target despite holding only 31% possession and with a much worse passing accuracy, 76% on 117 passes compared to 90% on 331 for Die Roten. To change the situation, Vincent Kompany made two changes at halftime, bringing on Dayot Upamecano to replace Kim Min-jae at RCB and Konrad Laimer to replace Leon Goretzka at CDM.

It looked like an even match at the break, but Bayern made sure in the thirty minutes after the restart that they would take full control of the match. The first opportunity came in the forty-eighth minute, as a Jackson short pass on the left side of the Wolfsburg penalty area landed in front of Musiala; the 23-year-old Stuttgart-born attacking midfielder tried a right-footed attempt, but Grabara reached out with both hands and quickly grabbed onto the ball. Two minutes later, Jackson would curl a shot from just outside the box, but the Polish goalkeeper read the play well, going down and covering the ball before launching it back into the midfield.

In the fifty-third minute, Laimer, Kimmich, and Musiala would break out into a 3-on-3 in the Wolfsburg third. The Austrian international, accidentally stepping on the boot of compatriot Wimmer, would pass the ball to his right to Kimmich - who in turn sent a short cross into the centre of the box to Musiala. Grabara did not have to move too much to grab onto the ball.

Three minutes later, Laimer would pass the ball short to Olise on the right side of the Wolfsburg third. Olise would then weave his way around the edge of the box before curling an attempt over a leaping Kamil Grabara, off the crossbar and into the bottom-left corner.

Bayern would not let up in the minutes that followed, looking to double the lead. At the hour mark, Kane would send a low-to-the-ground attempt past the screens of Vavro and Jeanuël Belocian before being punched away by Grabara.

Luis Díaz, who entered the match in place of Nicolas Jackson at LAM, would start another onside run on the left side of the box in the sixty-third minute, before passing the ball short to Kane. After a series of quick passes, Kane would tap the ball to Musiala at the front of the goal, but the latter’s deflection would go just wide of the right post.

In the seventy-sixth minute, Kumbedi would attempt a cross into the box from the right side of the Bayern third. It hits the arm of Stanišić, who had his arms close to his body, and goes out of play; the ruling from Jöllenbeck was a corner to the hosts, which was cleared away by a towering Bischof.

Bischof and Lennart Karl, who entered the match for Jamal Musiala, would both launch attempts from similar spots on the right side of the Wolfsburg half, just outside the penalty area - and in both cases, Grabara would grab onto the ball.

Wolfsburg would push for an equaliser in the final minutes. Mæhle and Pejčinović would go into a 3v1 opportunity on the right side of the box; however, when the former was about to make a pass on the left side of the box to the latter, the two bumped into each other and it allowed Stanišić to quickly hoof the ball away.

In the ninetieth minute, Kento Shiogai went into a one-on-four battle on the right side of the Bayern half, with Stanišić, Tah, Kimmich, and Bischof in front of him. He quickly threaded the ball to his left to a completely unmarked Mattias Svanberg for a one-on-one opportunity to tie the match late and earn Wolfsburg a crucial point in the relegation fight. Urbig ran well out of his goal to close down the angle; Svanberg, in his one-hundredth Bundesliga appearance, had the correct idea by aiming for the bottom-right corner with his right boot, but hit the right goalpost.

The final whistle went soon after, as FC Bayern München escaped with a 1-0 victory to complete an unbeaten 2025/26 season away from home (14-3-0). At the same time, VfL Wolfsburg remain third from the bottom of the table, sixteenth with a 6-8-19 record, finishing their home campaign with a league-worst 10 points (2-4-10).

The Meisterschale will be at the Allianz Arena next Saturday, as FC Bayern’s title celebrations will follow their concluding match against 1. FC Köln. As for VfL Wolfsburg, they will be looking to retain their Bundesliga place in a relegation derby with FC St. Pauli at Millerntor-Stadion in Hamburg. A win or draw hypothetically qualifies them for the relegation playoff if 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 does not win their remaining matches by a combined margin of seven goals or more; a loss means relegation to 2. Bundesliga for the first time in their history.

As all Matchweek 34 matches take place at the exact same time to allow no advantages for one team over another prior to kickoff, these matches are both set to start at 15:30 (CET) next Saturday.