Five moments from the Bundesliga finale
Bayern Munich received the Bundesliga trophy following Saturday's victory at Wolfsburg while Werder Bremen pulled off a final day escape with help from Union Berlin to keep alive their hopes of avoiding a first relegation since 1980.
The Bundesliga Meisterschale awaits Bayern Munich ahead of their final game of the season at Wolfsburg. POOL/AFP/KAI PFAFFENBACH
AFP Sport looks at five standout moments from the last round of Bundesliga matches:
Eight in a row
German league chief executive Christian Seifert presented Bayern with the “Meisterschale” — or championship shield — following their 4-0 victory over Wolfsburg, the club’s 19th win in their past 20 league outings. Muted celebrations were the order of the day with the traditional beer shower strictly off limits owing to the stringent coronavirus-related hygiene regulations in place. French youngster Michael Cuisance grabbed his first Bundesliga goal while Robert Lewandowski struck for the league-best 34th time this season.
Bremen earn stay of execution
Werder Bremen, the longest-serving Bundesliga club, snapped an appalling run of 14 home games without a win by crushing Cologne 6-1 to spare themselves from relegation, at least for the time being. Their final day victory coupled with Fortuna Dusseldorf losing saw Bremen climb out the bottom two at the latter’s expense. Florian Kohfeldt’s side will take on either Heidenheim or traditional German giants Hamburg in the two-legged promotion/relegation play-off next week. Bremen’s goal glut was all the more remarkable given they had scored just twice at home in the previous 1,000 minutes.
Werner signs off in style
Timo Werner rounded out his RB Leipzig career in trademark fashion, scoring twice in a 2-1 win at Augsburg to secure his club third place in the Bundesliga. The Germany international finished the season with 34 goals overall, 28 coming in the Bundesliga, and became the club’s all-time leading scorer (95) in his last match. His final touch at Augsburg delivered the winning goal, with the 24-year-old on his way to Chelsea after the Premier League club triggered Werner’s 60 million euro (£53 million, $67 million) release clause. The forward will join Chelsea in July, meaning he will play no further part in Leipzig’s Champions League campaign.
Kramaric gatecrashes Goetze farewell
An intended goodbye party for departing Dortmund forward Mario Goetze at Signal Iduna Park quickly turned sour as Hoffenheim striker Andrej Kramaric scored four times in a surprise 4-0 rout. The 28-year-old Goetze missed out on a final appearance, having been unable to comply with the league’s health regulations after regularly visiting hospital following the premature birth of his son. He received a bouquet of flowers and a photo collage with memories from his time at the club before kick-off. Goetze is leaving after 219 appearances across two separate spells for Dortmund, who he helped win the 2011 and 2012 Bundesliga titles.
Schalke fans protest club management
While Schalke slumped to a 4-0 defeat at Freiburg, extending their worst winless run to 16 matches, supporters staged a demonstration in Gelsenkirchen over the club’s management. Adding to the growing unrest was a coronavirus outbreak at a slaughterhouse run by Schalke chairman Clemens Toennies, the company head of Germany’s largest meat producer, that has infected more than 1,500 workers and prompted German authorities this week to order fresh lockdowns in two districts. Saturday’s on-pitch flop was the latest in a series of calamitous results in the second half of the campaign that left Schalke, as high as third in December, a dismal 12th at season’s end.
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