Muller, Thiago double act sees Bayern blitz Bremen

AFP, BERLIN: Thomas Mueller and Thiago Alcantara both netted twice as Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich warmed up for their crunch Champions League clash at home to Juventus by blitzing Werder Bremen 5-0 on Saturday.
With second-placed Borussia Dortmund playing Mainz on Sunday, Pep Guardiola’s Bayern took the chance to reopen an eight-point gap.
“People think it’s easy to win 5-0, but every game is like a final for us to stay ahead of Dortmund,” said Guardiola, who rested Dutch star Arjen Robben from the match-day squad.
Bayern host Juventus in Europe on Wednesday having drawn their last 16, first-leg 2-2 in Turin after throwing away a two-goal lead.
Bremen arrived in Munich buoyed by back-to-back wins over Bayer Leverkusen and bottom side Hanover, but missing three key players.
Veteran striker Claudio Pizarro was out with a groin injury while captain Clemens Fritz and dead-ball expert Zlatko Junuzovic were suspended.
It took Bayern just nine minutes to take the lead at Munich’s Allianz Arena.
Kingsley Coman’s cross was met by Thiago for his first league goal since February 2014 after a horror run of injuries.
Mueller made it 2-0 when he fired Coman’s cross home at close-range on 31 minutes.
Bremen goalkeeper Felix Wiedwald then blocked Franck Ribery’s fierce shot on 66 minutes, but Mueller fired in the rebound.
He now has 19 league goals and is third only to Lewandowski (24) and Dortmund’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (22) in Germany’s top flight.
Guardiola gave Germany’s World Cup winner Mario Goetze his first league start since October, but it was his replacement Lewandowski who came off the bench to hit Bayern’s fourth.
Mueller made way for Lewandowski and the Poland striker wasted little time hitting his 34th Bayern goal of the season on 86 minutes.
On 90 minutes, Coman produced his third assist of the game as Thiago fired home at the near post to complete the rout.
Earlier, Wolfsburg suffered a Champions League hangover with a 1-0 defeat at relegation-threatened Hoffenheim.
Wolfsburg reached the last eight in Europe for the first time in the club’s history as Tuesday’s 1-0 win at home to Gent sealed a 4-2 win on aggregate in the last 16.

Muller, Thiago double act sees Bayern blitz Bremen

AFP, BERLIN: Thomas Mueller and Thiago Alcantara both netted twice as Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich warmed up for their crunch Champions League clash at home to Juventus by blitzing Werder Bremen 5-0 on Saturday. With second-placed Borussia Dortmund playing Mainz on Sunday, Pep Guardiolas Bayern took the chance to reopen an eight-point gap. People think its easy to win 5-0, but every game is like a final for us to stay ahead of Dortmund, said Guardiola, who rested Dutch star Arjen Robben from the match-day squad. Bayern host Juventus in Europe on Wednesday having drawn their last 16, first-leg 2-2 in Turin after throwing away a two-goal lead. Bremen arrived in Munich buoyed by back-to-back wins over Bayer Leverkusen and bottom side Hanover, but missing three key players. Veteran striker Claudio Pizarro was out with a groin injury while captain Clemens Fritz and dead-ball expert Zlatko Junuzovic were suspended. It took Bayern just nine minutes to take the lead at Munichs Allianz Arena. Kingsley Comans cross was met by Thiago for his first league goal since February 2014 after a horror run of injuries. Mueller made it 2-0 when he fired Comans cross home at close-range on 31 minutes. Bremen goalkeeper Felix Wiedwald then blocked Franck Riberys fierce shot on 66 minutes, but Mueller fired in the rebound. He now has 19 league goals and is third only to Lewandowski (24) and Dortmunds Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (22) in Germanys top flight. Guardiola gave Germanys World Cup winner Mario Goetze his first league start since October, but it was his replacement Lewandowski who came off the bench to hit Bayerns fourth. Mueller made way for Lewandowski and the Poland striker wasted little time hitting his 34th Bayern goal of the season on 86 minutes. On 90 minutes, Coman produced his third assist of the game as Thiago fired home at the near post to complete the rout. Earlier, Wolfsburg suffered a Champions League hangover with a 1-0 defeat at relegation-threatened Hoffenheim. Wolfsburg reached the last eight in Europe for the first time in the clubs history as Tuesdays 1-0 win at home to Gent sealed a 4-2 win on aggregate in the last 16.