Share

Christmas looms, but Bayern vow "no more gifts" in title race

Berlin - The festive season is looming, but Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich insists the defending champions must not give away any more points in the Bundesliga title race.

Back-to-back defeats at home to Leverkusen and last Saturday at leaders Borussia Moenchengladbach leave Bayern seventh in the German league table.

"We have nothing more to give away," insisted Kimmich after Bayern won their first match in their last three with a 3-1 victory over Tottenham on Wednesday. That made them the first German club to win all six group games in a Champions League season.

Bayern trail Gladbach by seven points ahead of Saturday's home match against Werder Bremen.

However, at exactly the same stage of last season they were nine points behind Dortmund, but gradually eroded the gap to win a seventh straight league title by two points in May. 

After squandering numerous chances in their recent league defeats, interim coach Hansi Flick said the win over Jose Mourinho's Spurs was a "sign that we could turn our chances into a win".

There was good news on Thursday when examination showed the knee injury Kingsley Coman picked up against Spurs was not as bad as expected. Even so, Bayern have not said how long the French winger will be sidelined for.

Bremen are struggling in 14th place after picking up just 14 points in as many games.

Werder have lost their last 20 games against Bayern and their last win at the Allianz Arena was back in September 2008.

Nevertheless, head coach Florian Kohfeldt, 37, says Bremen are determined to take points to stave off relegation woes and are fired up to poach a rare win in Munich.

"We want to be angry. We have to be angry," he said in regards to their low ranking in the table.

"You can either bury your head and hope things improve or you get really angry and convert it into energy."

Bayern rested Robert Lewandowski against Spurs and, as the star Poland striker failed to score in their recent league defeats, he will be eager to add to his 27 goals in 22 games in all competitions this season.

Leaders Gladbach are at Wolfsburg on Sunday with two of their summer singings already repaying the club.

France Under-21 winger Marcus Thuram, signed from relegated French league side Guingamp, won the decisive penalty in last Saturday's 2-1 win over Bayern.

The spot kick was converted by left-back Ramy Bensebaini, signed out of relative obscurity from Ligue 1 team Rennes. 

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should the Proteas pick Faf du Plessis for the T20 World Cup in West Indies and the United States in June?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Faf still has a lot to give ...
53% - 10 votes
No! It's time to move on ...
47% - 9 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE