Bayern Munich 5-1 Hoffenheim: Luis Diaz bags hat-trick; Kane excellent | OneFootball

Bayern Munich returned to winning ways after beating Hoffenheim 5-1 in the Bundesliga on Sunday afternoon at Allianz Arena. 

Harry Kane scored twice from the spot, while Luis Diaz scored thrice as Bayern extended their lead at the top to six points.

Kevin Akpoguma was sent off in the 17th minute. Andrej Kramaric scored in the 35th minute for Hoffenheim, but Bayern’s extra-man advantage made the difference.

Bayern Munich 5-1 Hoffenheim: Match report

(Photo by Sebastian Widmann/Getty Images)

The Bavarian giants made a strong start and came close to scoring with Serge Gnabry inside the opening five minutes. The German winger could not keep his shot on target.

Michael Olise nearly scored the opening goal, but his left-footed shot was saved in the top left corner by Oliver Baumann.

Bayern created another dangerous opportunity, with Aleksandar Pavlovic coming close to scoring with a header from a very close range.

A huge moment of the game came in the 17th minute when Kevin Akpoguma was sent off, after he pulled Diaz in the penalty area.

Harry Kane, the ever-reliable Bayern goalscorer, stepped up and finished calmly to give his side a 1-0 lead.

Hoffenheim then created several glorious opportunities. Ozan Kabak came close to restoring parity with a header from close range, but could not keep it on target.

Diaz cut inside in his trademark style and hit straight at the keeper, and on the rebound, Kane failed to score from a close range.

Fisnik Asllani then hit the bar with a header from the centre of the box, after Vladimir Coufal found him in the box witha fabulous cross.

Andrej Kramaric was put through on goal by a delicate pass from Asllani. Manuel Neuer produced a superb save to deny him from close range.

Moments later, Andrej Kramaric scored with a left-footed shot from the centre of the box, after Neuer produced a suicidal pass in an attempt to be too clever with his distribution.

Bayern increased the tempo of their game, and nearly responded immediately after Gnabry found Kane inside the box with a lobbed delivery. Kane’s effort from close range was saved by Baumann.

Towards the end of the first half, Coufal made a horrible challenge on Diaz inside the box, leaving the referee no choice but to point to the spot.

Harry Kane stepped up once again to score his second goal of the night.

There was more drama to unfold when the end of the first half, and Bayern broke Hoffenheim’s resistance after Luis Diaz scored from close range his first of the night, but a big credit should go to Kane for creating the goal for him.

He took the ball from nearly his own half all the way to the final third before picking him up with a beautiful pass.

After a slow start to the second half, where Bayern mainly focused on retaining possession, they created a deadly opportunity through Kane, whose close-range header was saved by the Hoffenheim keeper once again.

In the 62nd minute, Michael Olise picked up a diagonal ball from the right-hand side from Kane. The Frenchman danced into the box and produced a sumptuous low cross in the path of Luis Diaz, who did not need any second invitation to score from close range.

In the 67th minute, Baumann made another save to deny Kane. The England striker could have easily scored a hat-trick tonight, but he did enough to put Bayern in a match-winning position before he was taken off.

Jamal Musiala created some good openings inside the box, but did not threaten enough to force Baumann into making saves.

Musiala, however, did provide an assist for Luis Diaz‘s final goal of the night. The Colombian made space for himself with his dazzling footwork and hit the target from outside the box to the bottom right corner.

The scoreline was quite flattering in the end, but Hoffenheim really put up a strong fight in the first half, even after going a man down.

Bayern Munich player ratings

Manuel Neuer 7; Josip Stanisic – 7; Dayot Upamecano – 6, Jonathan Tah – 6, Alphonso Davies – 6, Joshua Kimmich – 7, Aleksandar Pavlovic – 7; Michael Olise -8, Serge Gnabry -7, Luiz Diaz – 10, Harry Kane – 9

Bayern Munich vs Hoffenheim: Match stats

Possession: Bayern Munich – 54.7% ; Hoffenheim – 45.3%

Shots:  Bayern Munich – 27 ; Hoffenheim – 9