BERLIN (AP) — Even while resting key players, Bayern Munich extended its record start to the season and ended Bayer Leverkusen’s Bundesliga-record 37-game unbeaten away run with a 3-0 win over the visitors on Saturday.
Tom Bischof sent Serge Gnabry through to open the scoring in the 25th minute, Konrad Laimer crossed for Nicolas Jackson to head the second goal in the 31st, and Raphaël Guerreiro forced an own goal from Loic Badé before the break.
Gnabry, Jackson and the 17-year-old Lennart Karl made way for Harry Kane, Luis Díaz and Michael Olise before the hour-mark, giving the three substitutes the chance to warm up for the trip to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Leverkusen, which was without the influential Álex Grimaldo because of muscular problems, had sent on 19-year-old Algeria forward Ibrahim Maza after the break. But the visiting team never looked anything near the team that broke Bayern’s domestic dominance in 2024.
Bayern hadn’t beaten Leverkusen in the Bundesliga since September 2022. But it stretched its winning start to the season to 15 games across all competitions, including the German Supercup.
Leipzig the closest challenger
Ivory Coast teenager Yan Diomande and Brazilian forward Rômulo helped Leipzig consolidate second place with a 3-1 win over Stuttgart.
The 18-year-old Diomande forced an own goal from Jeff Chabot before the break, then scored the second goal in the 53rd minute when he controlled Christoph Baumgartner’s punt forward and – despite facing two defenders – fired inside the right post.
It was his second Bundesliga goal since joining Leipzig from Spanish team Leganes in the offseason.
Substitute Tiago Tomás pulled one back for Stuttgart, but a mistake from goalkeeper Alexander Nübel, who lost control of the ball while attempting a trick to elude Rômulo, allowed the Brazilian to seal the result in stoppage time.
Borussia Mönchengladbach enjoyed a 4-0 win at St. Pauli, while Eintracht Frankfurt was held to a 1-1 draw at Heidenheim.
Frankfurt lost forward Can Uzun to an apparent hamstring injury midway through the first half.
Also, Werder Bremen drew at Mainz 1-1, and Union Berlin and Freiburg ground out a 0-0 draw.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Ciarán Fahey, The Associated Press
