Bayern Munich 2-0 Bayer Leverkusen: Player ratings as Die Roten take huge step towards title

Goals from Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Joshua Kimmich gave Bayern Munich a comfortable 2-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday night, as Die Roten extended their lead at the Bundesliga summit to ten points.

Hansi Flick’s side started brightly and took just seven minutes to break the deadlock. Thomas Muller’s effort was well saved by Lukas Hradecky but the ball fell to Choupo-Moting, who reacted quickly to take a touch and volley home from close range. The Bavarian giants then made it two in the 13th minute, when a half-cleared cross fell to the edge of Leverkusen’s area for Kimmich to expertly hammer into the bottom corner.

Bayern continued to look dangerous going forward and thought they’d found a third on 66 minutes. Choupo-Moting latched onto Benjamin Pavard’s sweeping pass over the top and coolly rolled the ball under Hradecky, only for the Bayern striker to be denied as VAR ruled him offside in the build-up. 

But Flick’s men saw out the 2-0 win to take advantage of RB Leipzig’s shock 2-1 loss to Cologne and move a seemingly unassailable ten points clear with just four games remaining, making a ninth consecutive Meisterschale an inevitability.

Now, let’s see how Die Roten rated...

BAYERN MUNICH PLAYER RATINGS

1. Goalkeeper & defenders

Manuel Neuer (GK) - 6/10 - Sharp whenever the ball came his way and made four stops to maintain a clean sheet.

Benjamin Pavard (RB) - 6/10 - Unusually didn’t see much of the ball in an offensive sense and couldn’t influence as much as he would’ve wanted. Was strong in his defensive duties, making two ball recoveries.

Jerome Boateng (CB) - 7/10 - At times struggled with the pace of Leon Bailey but stood his ground well and played some excellent balls out from deep, often starting attacking phases himself with 93% pass accuracy.

Lucas Hernandez (CB) - 6/10 - Looked very assured and composed in his defensive work and positioned himself well to clear from Leverkusen crosses, winning three aerial challenges.

Alphonso Davies (LB) - 5/10 - Quick to track back and deny Leverkusen’s right-hand side on numerous occasions but didn’t have the same impact on the front foot, being sloppy, lacklustre and strangely tentative with his crossing and dribbling.

2. Midfielders

Joshua Kimmich (CM) - 8/10 - Moved around well and found space to dictate, distributing the ball and making his side tick throughout. Got on the scoresheet himself this time, finishing brilliantly for Bayern’s second.

David Alaba (CM) - 8/10 - Covered a lot of ground, making a couple of key ball recoveries but was most influential in attack. Looked creative and threatening whenever he was in possession, surging up the pitch and putting in both of the crosses that led to Bayern’s goals.

Thomas Muller (AM) - 7/10 - Roamed around well, battled hard and was dangerous on the ball, often linking up well with colleagues to get his side flowing freely upfield. Unlucky not to score with his effort that rebounded to Choupo-Moting,

3. Forwards

Kingsley Coman (RW) - 5/10 - Had some good moments and looked capable of creating something, but was mostly wasteful on the ball and couldn’t penetrate the Leverkusen back line.

Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (ST) - 8/10 - Proving to be a very satisfactory understudy to Robert Lewandowski. Hard-working, great link-up play, bright with his movement, and finished off clinically to make it 1-0.

Jamal Musiala (LW) - 7/10 - Really bright once again. Made some lovely touches on the ball and seems to glide past defenders at will. Has a big impact on this Bayern side, registering another two key passes and seven ball recoveries this time out. 

4. Substitutes

Leon Goretzka (CM) - 6/10 - Picked out good positions around the area but clearly lacking in match fitness as he wildly swung at a couple of decent goalscoring chances.

Tanguy Nianzou (CB) - 6/10 - Maintained an uncharacteristically solid Bayern back line and saw out a rare league clean sheet.

Leroy Sane (RW) - 5/10 - Made a couple of searching balls through to his strike partners but was generally sloppy, wasting a gilt-edged chance from around eight yards out.

Bouna Sarr (RB) - N/A

Christopher Scott (LW) - N/A