Bayern Munich one win away from title

Berlin: As they have done on so many occasions over the course of this unusual season, Bayern Munich weighed up the challenge set for them and responded accordingly and emphatically.
Just three days after a German Cup semifinal win over Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayern were missing key players through injury and suspension, and facing a side which had beaten them in the return fixture back in December.
And while they were second-best for long periods against Borussia Mönchengladbach, still they prevailed.
Leon Goretzka netted the winner four minutes from time after a Benjamin Pavard own-goal had cancelled out Joshua Zirkzee's opener in the first period. The Bavarians are now just one more win away from an eighth straight Bundesliga title.
A season of problems and answers
When Niko Kovac lost the dressing room back in autumn, the board identified in Hansi Flick a head coach who perfectly combines tactical acumen and management experience which Kovac lacked.
After Thomas Müller endured a difficult first half of the season, the German international bounced back and equaled the Bundesliga’s assists record.
When half of their first-choice back line was ruled out injured, Bayern improvised by throwing in a teenage winger at left-back – and Alphonso Davies has been a revelation.
And when the coronavirus pandemic put the Bundesliga on hold for two months, the Bavarians responded by winning every game since the restart by a combined score of 17-4 to put them within touching distance of the title.
Borussia Dortmund's late win in Düsseldorf earlier on Saturday meant that Bayern couldn't secure that title against Gladbach, but the visit of Marco Rose's Foals to Fröttmaning still posed a significant challenge.
With Müller and Robert Lewandowski suspended and Davies and Kingsley Coman fatigued following the midweek cup semifinal, Flick was forced to make changes. "It’s because we have so many games," he explained ahead of kick-off.
Lucas Hernandez made only his ninth start of the season, Mikael Cuisance made his first ever start for Bayern – against his former club – while Joshua Zirkzee replaced Lewandowski up front.
It was time to see just how good this Bayern squad really is.
Bayern second-best
But by half-time, Gladbach – also missing their top scorer in Alassane Plea – had passed more, tackled more and run more than Bayern, and were deservedly level at 1-1 thanks to Pavard's own-goal.
Without Müller coordinating Bayern's relentless pressing in the final third, Gladbach had more time on the ball to plan their forays forward and Patrick Herrmann saw an early goal ruled out for offside.
But even a depleted and rejigged Bayern need only one opening. When Cuisance put Yann Sommer under pressure, the Swiss stopper, who had saved heroically from Hernandez just minutes earlier, played the ball straight to Zirkzee and the 19-year-old finished coolly into an empty net from distance.