Augsburg 2-2 Bayern: Record Goal & Neuer Errors as Champions Held
Bayern Munich twice came from behind to salvage a 2-2 draw at Augsburg in a chaotic Bundesliga encounter that began with the fastest goal in the competition’s history and featured a pair of costly errors from Manuel Neuer.
Barely had referee Sven Jablonski blown his whistle at the WWK Arena than the visitors found themselves behind. Neuer received the ball from the kick-off, took a heavy touch and attempted a chip clearance that only succeeded in presenting possession to Robin Fellhauer. The Augsburg forward rolled the ball into the empty net after just 8.4 seconds, breaking the previous Bundesliga record of nine seconds.
The shock early concession left Bayern rattled. Augsburg almost doubled their lead midway through the first half when a corner reached Chrislain Matsima, only for the defender to skew his effort wide from two yards. Harry Kane headed over and struck the crossbar with a first-time volley in stoppage time as the champions struggled to impose themselves before the interval.
After the break Bayern thought they had equalised when Luis Diaz’s effort squirmed under Finn Dahmen, but the goal was ruled out for an offside in the build-up. Justice of a sort arrived in the 55th minute. Kane slipped a precise pass into Ismael Saibari, who swept a low finish into the bottom corner to restore parity.
Nine minutes later Augsburg were back in front. Calvin Brackelmann’s long-range shot was only half-dealt with by Neuer, and Rodrigo Ribeiro reacted quickest to prod the rebound home from close range. Bayern responded with intensity, only to see two further efforts chalked off for offside – first Serge Gnabry converting Kane’s cross, then Diaz again after Alphonso Davies had collected the ball in an advanced position.
The equaliser finally arrived with 10 minutes remaining. Kane and Aleksandar Pavlovic combined neatly on the left before the England captain’s low cross found substitute Nathaniel Brown unmarked at the back post. The full-back finished emphatically for his first Bundesliga goal and a share of the spoils.
Gnabry struck the woodwork twice in the closing stages as Bayern pushed for a winner, but Augsburg held firm. The result leaves Vincent Kompany’s side still unbeaten yet two points adrift of leaders Borussia Dortmund, while the hosts celebrated a hard-earned point against their Bavarian rivals in a match packed with incident from the very first second.
