GERMANY
Bayern Munich equalled the record for the longest unbeaten run in the history of the Bundesliga with a 2-1 win at Hoffenheim on Saturday.
The hard fought result was enough to extend their remarkable record of not having lost a top-flight game in more than a year.
In doing so, they have equalled the all-time Bundesliga record of 36 matches unbeaten set by Hamburg between January 1982 and January 1983.
Bayern manager Pep Guardiola said: “It was a difficiult win to get, but that’s always been the case for Bayern on this pitch.
“It wasn’t without a doubt our best performance but we’ve won so I’m satisfied.”
Bayern can go on and own the record outright by avoiding defeat against neighbours Augsburg next weekend.
Guardiola’s side trailed at the Rhein-Neckar Arena in Sinsheim when teenage defender Niklas Suele converted in the 34th minute after Manuel Neuer made a hash of dealing with a corner.
However, the visitors were level inside five minutes when Franck Ribery’s free-kick took a huge deflection off Mario Mandzukic to trump Koen Casteels in the home goal.
Then Thomas Mueller secured the win with quarter of an hour remaining when he tucked the ball in after a flurry of shots and rebounds in the Hoffenheim area
On Friday, striker Robert Lewandowski scored a second-half hat-trick as Borussia Dortmund reclaimed top spot in the Bundesliga with an awe-inspiring 6-1 demolition of Stuttgart on Friday.
The Poland forward netted three times in 18 minutes to help lift Dortmund to 28 points, two ahead of Bayern Munich.
“We are very satisfied because we did exactly what we set out to do,” said Lewandowski, who is set to leave after this season and has said he will announce his new club in January.
“Now we need to shift focus to the Arsenal game where we also want to get the three points,” he added of Wednesday’s clash in Champions League Group F where both teams have six points along with Napoli in a three-way tie at the top.
FRANCE
Paris Saint-Germain threw down the gauntlet to Monaco as they beat Lorient 4-0 to go three points clear at the top.
With the division’s two big-spenders jostling for position in the title race, Laurent Blanc’s men sent a stark warning out as they hit four without star man Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
They earned the points with goals from Lucas Moura and Jeremy Menez, and a brace from Edinson Cavani.
That they did it without Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva will be of even greater comfort, although in truth they were never in danger.
Just three minutes had gone when Moura opened the scoring with a far-post volley off a Lucas Digne cross, with his brilliant strike giving Fabien Audard no chance as it went in off the post.
Lorient’s plight worsened as Jeremie Aliadiere limped off, with goalkeeper Audard soon following as their evening unravelled.
Replacement stopper Baptiste Reynet’s first task was to panic as a Cavani strike whistled over his bar, before he was bending down to pick the ball up after Menez beat him with a first-time shot from inside the area after a Digne pass.
Lorient briefly rallied after that as Salvatore Sirigu scrambled a Kevin Monet-Paquet header off the line, but they quickly found themselves three goals down as half-time approached.
A nice move set Moura free down the right and with Reynet deciding the best way to stop him was to race off his line, the goal was left unguarded.
He quickly realised this but as he turned to sprint back, Moura crossed for Cavani who headed in before Reynet could recover.
PSG knew the job was done at the break and their intensity dropped after it, leaving it until the 73rd minute to threaten again as Adrien Rabiot scraped the post from the edge of the area.
A fourth did arrive nine minutes from time as Cavani again exploited a vacant goal. Menez’s corner found Rabiot, his header was pushed away but, with Reynet on the deck, Cavani was able to pick his spot.
TURKEY
In Turkey, Roberto Mancini’s Galatasaray moved to within three points of Super Lig leaders Fenerbahce as they beat Konyaspor 2-1.
The Istanbul club did not have it all their own way, though, having to recover from a goal down to take the points.
Recep Aydin scored for Konyaspor in the 16th minute and they looked set to take their lead to the break until Didier Drogba equalised on the stroke of half-time.
That gave Gala the platform they needed and Burak Yilmaz won it with a 67th minute strike.
