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Bayern Munich score two late goals to beat Mainz
Pep Guardiola's side will clinch title with win against Hertha Berlin on Tuesday
Borussia Dortmund still one point ahead of Schalke in battle for second
Bayern Munich may have left it late to beat Mainz but will wrap up the Bundesliga title in super quick time next Tuesday should they defeat Hertha Berlin.
The Bavarians were eight minutes away from dropping their first league points since the start of October on Saturday before two late goals ensured yet another win.
Bastian Schweinsteiger’s 82nd minute strike followed by Mario Gotze four minutes later sealed an 18th league win in a row and a 24th out of 26 this season to give Pep Guardiola’s side 74 points – 23 more than nearest rival Borussia Dortmund who have 51.
All of which means that Bayern can make last season’s title won with six games to spare look positively sluggish compared to this year’s likely margin of seven.
“We’ve played very good opponents and we’ve won,” Guardiola said of the victory over Mainz.
“We’ve extended our record to 18 wins on the trot. That’s the result of a lot of hard work. I’m just pleased about winning today against one of the toughest teams we’ll face this season.
“We only need one more win now. It’s in our own hands…”
In the battle for second place, Borussia Dortmund retained a one point advantage over Schalke.
Jurgen Klopp’s side were 3-0 winners at Hannover while Schalke beat bottom side Braunschweig 3-1.
In Saturday’s remaining Bundesliga fixtures, Stuttgart won 1-0 against Hamburg while Monchengladbach rise to fifth after a 3-0 win over mid-table Hertha Berlin.
Wolfsburg and Augsburg drew 1-1.
Meanwhile in Spain, four games were played Saturday ahead of Real Madrid’s clash against Barcelona at the Bernabeu on Sunday night.
Granada moved up to 11th place with a 1-0 win over Elche while the match between Espanyol and Levante ended in a 0-0 draw. Valladolid and Rayo Vallecano also drew (1-1). In the late kick-off, Athletic Bilbao can consolidate fourth place with victory over Getafe.
There were two fixtures in Italy’s Serie A on Saturday.
Torino beat Livorno 3-1 while Roma cemented second place behind leaders Juventus with a 2-0 win at ChievoVerona.
The win gives Rudi Garcia’s side 67 points – eight fewer that Juve who travel to Catania on Sunday and nine more than third place Napoli who entertain Fiorentina, also on Sunday.
