Bayern Munich eased past host Greuther Fuerth 3-1 on Friday (Sep 24), despite playing almost the entire second half with 10 men, to open up a three point lead at the top of the Bundesliga.
While Thomas Mueller and Joshua Kimmich were on target in the champion's eighth consecutive win in all competitions this season, Bayern top scorer Robert Lewandowski saw his scoring streak snap, after failing to equal Gerd Mueller's all-time record of scoring in 16 consecutive league games.
"I would not really call it a great performance from us," said Kimmich, who also scored twice last week. "But we did have the game under control even when we were a man down.
It was always going to be a one-sided encounter against the promoted club, bottom in the Bundesliga and without a win this season, and Bayern took a quick lead after 10 minutes with Mueller slotting in from an Alphonso Davies cutback. Kimmich was devastatingly accurate with a low drive on the half hour to score his third league goal and Lewandowski hit the woodwork just before the break.
A reckless challenge by Benjamin Pavard three minutes after the restart left the defending champion with 10 men but it hardly changed the dynamic of the game.
A 68th minute own goal by Sebastian Griesbeck, under pressure from Lewandowski, killed off any slim hopes of a comeback that Fuerth may have been secretly harbouring.
The home fans did get a moment to savour when Cedric Itten headed in a cross in the 87th minute to cut the deficit.
Bayern, which faces Dynamo Kyiv in the Champions League next week, moves up to 16 points from six matches, with VfL Wolfsburg, on 13 in second place, travelling to Hoffenheim on Saturday. Third-placed Borussia Dortmund, on 12, takes on Borussia Moenchengladbach.
