HARRY KANE SCORED his 21st goal of the Bundesliga season as Bayern Munich came from behind to win 5-1 at RB Leipzig.
The victory restores Bayern’s 11-point lead atop the ladder over second-placed Borussia Dortmund, while continuing their record-breaking campaign.
Unbeaten Bayern have dropped just four points on their way to a record-equalling tally of 50 after 18 games. Bayern’s total of 71 goals scored is also a record at this stage of a German league season.
Leipzig took a first-half lead through Romulo, but Bayern kicked into gear after the break, Serge Gnabry, Kane, Jonathan Tah, Aleksandar Pavlovic and Michael Olise all scoring.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said Leipzig were “twice as good as we were” in the opening half, adding “but in the second-half — my god, the boys delivered.
“We weren’t afraid and we really went for it.”
Leipzig broke through after 20 minutes when Romulo snuck past Bayern’s Tah to poke in an Antonio Nusa pass from close range.
The hosts were undone in the simplest fashion just after half-time. Dayot Upamecano picked Christoph Baumgartner’s pocket and fed Gnabry, who guided the ball into the bottom corner.
Bayern took the lead after 67 minutes, once again thanks to a Leipzig mistake. Olise’s floated cross looked harmless until Ridle Baku lost his footing, allowing an unmarked Kane time and space to blast home.
With Leipzig’s resistance broken, Tah, Pavlovic and Olise all scored in the final 10 minutes, while Jamal Musiala returned late off the bench after a six-month injury absence.
Earlier, an Emre Can penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time saved Borussia Dortmund’s blushes in a 3-2 home win against lowly St Pauli.
In the dying moments, VAR found a foul on Germany forward Maximilian Beier, bringing Dortmund captain Can to the spot.
In the Netherlands, Troy Parrott’s AZ Alkmaar lost 3-1 to PEC Zwolle, with the Dubliner failing to get on the scoresheet.
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Anselmo García MacNulty with a superb header to double PEC Zwolle's lead 🙌
Troy Parrott may be flying right now, but it's another Irishman making his mark so far! 🇮🇪 pic.twitter.com/LcObThAqoB
However, there was one Irish goalscorer on the day, with Anselmo García MacNulty on target with a header for for Zwolle.
In Italy, Lautaro Martinez fired Inter Milan six points clear at the top of Serie A with the only goal in Saturday’s 1-0 win at Udinese, as Napoli responded to the pressure by beating Sassuolo 1-0.
Martinez expertly poked home the winner in the 20th minute in Udine to continue Inter’s nine-match unbeaten run in Italy’s top flight ahead of Tuesday’s key Champions League clash with Arsenal.
Inter were the better team from start to finish, putting pressure on Udinese high up the pitch as Cristian Chivu wants his team to do.
“What we’re displaying on the pitch is a testament to the desire of these players, because it’s not easy to change habits,” Chivu told DAZN.
“We defend high up the pitch and we start with pressure from the forwards and it comes from their work, the desire for our midfielders to win duels and from the courage of our defenders in maintaining a high line.”
Inter have collected 25 points from a possible 27 since losing the Milan derby in late November and again showed a ruthlessness in dealing with the smaller sides that both AC Milan and Napoli have lacked.
Napoli stayed six points behind Inter in third after Stanislav Lobotka’s first club goal in over three years snapped a run of three straight draws.
Lobotka smashed home on the rebound in the seventh minute in Naples, breaking a scoring duck which stretched back to the opening day of Napoli’s triumphant 2022/23 season. It decided what was otherwise an even contest.
The champions are level on 43 points with second-placed Milan, who host Lecce on Sunday.
They trail their local rivals Inter even though the seven-time European champions have not lost since the opening day of the season.
Kylian Mbappe pictured during the match between Real Madrid CF and Levante UD. Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
In Spain, angry Madrid fans jeered their own team before they went on to beat Levante 2-0 in La Liga on Saturday to record new coach Alvaro Arbeloa’s first win at the helm.
Arbeloa’s debut after replacing Xabi Alonso ended in a humiliating Copa del Rey defeat in midweek at second-tier Albacete, but goals from Kylian Mbappe and Raul Asencio secured three vital points at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Madrid cut the gap on leaders Barcelona to one point before the in-form Spanish champions visit Real Sociedad on Sunday.
Star players Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham came in for ire from the home fans after a disastrous week. Mbappe also started but was spared the jeers.
The French forward had been expected to return for the Champions League game against Monaco next week as he manages his recovery from a knee sprain.
It was Arbeloa’s 43rd birthday, and he was eventually able to celebrate with a victory, although his team lacked energy and spark in the first half.
That was not the case in the stands as a significant part of the crowd harangued their own team, showing they were upset at the club’s situation.
In a wild week, Los Blancos lost the Spanish Super Cup final to rivals Barcelona in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, parted ways with Alonso on Monday and then crashed out of the cup on Wednesday.
Some fans also chanted for president Florentino Perez to resign in a sour atmosphere in the Spanish capital.
Mbappe, who appeared in pain in the warm-up after a collision with team-mate Dean Huijsen, had the best chance of a flat first half against the team in 19th in La Liga.
In the second half, he drew a foul in the area from Adrian de la Fuente to earn a penalty, which he dispatched for his 19th league goal of the campaign.
Mbappe has scored 50 goals in 53 La Liga games, taking only a little longer than Real Madrid’s all-time top goalscorer Cristiano Ronaldo to reach the milestone.
The Portuguese managed it in 51 appearances.
Asencio doubled Madrid’s advantage with a header into the top corner from Guler’s corner as the hosts took control.
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Kane scores as Bayern deliver comeback win over Leipzig
LAST UPDATE | 17 Jan
HARRY KANE SCORED his 21st goal of the Bundesliga season as Bayern Munich came from behind to win 5-1 at RB Leipzig.
The victory restores Bayern’s 11-point lead atop the ladder over second-placed Borussia Dortmund, while continuing their record-breaking campaign.
Unbeaten Bayern have dropped just four points on their way to a record-equalling tally of 50 after 18 games. Bayern’s total of 71 goals scored is also a record at this stage of a German league season.
Leipzig took a first-half lead through Romulo, but Bayern kicked into gear after the break, Serge Gnabry, Kane, Jonathan Tah, Aleksandar Pavlovic and Michael Olise all scoring.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said Leipzig were “twice as good as we were” in the opening half, adding “but in the second-half — my god, the boys delivered.
“We weren’t afraid and we really went for it.”
Leipzig broke through after 20 minutes when Romulo snuck past Bayern’s Tah to poke in an Antonio Nusa pass from close range.
The hosts were undone in the simplest fashion just after half-time. Dayot Upamecano picked Christoph Baumgartner’s pocket and fed Gnabry, who guided the ball into the bottom corner.
Bayern took the lead after 67 minutes, once again thanks to a Leipzig mistake. Olise’s floated cross looked harmless until Ridle Baku lost his footing, allowing an unmarked Kane time and space to blast home.
With Leipzig’s resistance broken, Tah, Pavlovic and Olise all scored in the final 10 minutes, while Jamal Musiala returned late off the bench after a six-month injury absence.
Earlier, an Emre Can penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time saved Borussia Dortmund’s blushes in a 3-2 home win against lowly St Pauli.
In the dying moments, VAR found a foul on Germany forward Maximilian Beier, bringing Dortmund captain Can to the spot.
In the Netherlands, Troy Parrott’s AZ Alkmaar lost 3-1 to PEC Zwolle, with the Dubliner failing to get on the scoresheet.
However, there was one Irish goalscorer on the day, with Anselmo García MacNulty on target with a header for for Zwolle.
In Italy, Lautaro Martinez fired Inter Milan six points clear at the top of Serie A with the only goal in Saturday’s 1-0 win at Udinese, as Napoli responded to the pressure by beating Sassuolo 1-0.
Martinez expertly poked home the winner in the 20th minute in Udine to continue Inter’s nine-match unbeaten run in Italy’s top flight ahead of Tuesday’s key Champions League clash with Arsenal.
Inter were the better team from start to finish, putting pressure on Udinese high up the pitch as Cristian Chivu wants his team to do.
“What we’re displaying on the pitch is a testament to the desire of these players, because it’s not easy to change habits,” Chivu told DAZN.
“We defend high up the pitch and we start with pressure from the forwards and it comes from their work, the desire for our midfielders to win duels and from the courage of our defenders in maintaining a high line.”
Inter have collected 25 points from a possible 27 since losing the Milan derby in late November and again showed a ruthlessness in dealing with the smaller sides that both AC Milan and Napoli have lacked.
Napoli stayed six points behind Inter in third after Stanislav Lobotka’s first club goal in over three years snapped a run of three straight draws.
Lobotka smashed home on the rebound in the seventh minute in Naples, breaking a scoring duck which stretched back to the opening day of Napoli’s triumphant 2022/23 season. It decided what was otherwise an even contest.
The champions are level on 43 points with second-placed Milan, who host Lecce on Sunday.
They trail their local rivals Inter even though the seven-time European champions have not lost since the opening day of the season.
In Spain, angry Madrid fans jeered their own team before they went on to beat Levante 2-0 in La Liga on Saturday to record new coach Alvaro Arbeloa’s first win at the helm.
Arbeloa’s debut after replacing Xabi Alonso ended in a humiliating Copa del Rey defeat in midweek at second-tier Albacete, but goals from Kylian Mbappe and Raul Asencio secured three vital points at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Madrid cut the gap on leaders Barcelona to one point before the in-form Spanish champions visit Real Sociedad on Sunday.
Star players Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham came in for ire from the home fans after a disastrous week. Mbappe also started but was spared the jeers.
The French forward had been expected to return for the Champions League game against Monaco next week as he manages his recovery from a knee sprain.
It was Arbeloa’s 43rd birthday, and he was eventually able to celebrate with a victory, although his team lacked energy and spark in the first half.
That was not the case in the stands as a significant part of the crowd harangued their own team, showing they were upset at the club’s situation.
In a wild week, Los Blancos lost the Spanish Super Cup final to rivals Barcelona in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, parted ways with Alonso on Monday and then crashed out of the cup on Wednesday.
Some fans also chanted for president Florentino Perez to resign in a sour atmosphere in the Spanish capital.
Mbappe, who appeared in pain in the warm-up after a collision with team-mate Dean Huijsen, had the best chance of a flat first half against the team in 19th in La Liga.
In the second half, he drew a foul in the area from Adrian de la Fuente to earn a penalty, which he dispatched for his 19th league goal of the campaign.
Mbappe has scored 50 goals in 53 La Liga games, taking only a little longer than Real Madrid’s all-time top goalscorer Cristiano Ronaldo to reach the milestone.
The Portuguese managed it in 51 appearances.
Asencio doubled Madrid’s advantage with a header into the top corner from Guler’s corner as the hosts took control.
– © AFP 2026
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