Bayern Munich bounced back after two chastening defeats to rout Eintracht Frankfurt 4-0 on Saturday, with Franck Ribery the main architect of the much needed pick-me-up.
The France international scored one of the goals and was instrumental in setting up another in a result that has given under-fire coach Jurgen Klinsmann some much needed breathing space from his critics.
Bayern took a third-minute lead when Luca Toni set up Ribery, who scored with an angled shot from the right from 20m for his seventh goal of the season.
PHOTO: AFP
Barely quarter of an hour later the former Marseille playmaker conjured up a pinpoint free-kick with his left foot for Toni to volley in.
On 35 minutes, Brazilian Lucio headed in from a corner for Bayern’s third, with Bastian Schweinsteiger completing a satisfactory afternoon’s work three minutes after the break.
Bayern remain three points behind Wolfsburg, who notched up their ninth straight win, a 2-1 defeat of Borussia Munchengladbach.
Wolfsburg failed to replicate last weekend’s stunning romp over Bayern over a Munchengladbach side that are struggling to avoid the drop.
Wolfsburg’s Edin Dzeko put the Bundesliga leaders in front in the 21st minute, only for the home side to level with 11 minutes left on the clock.
But Wolfsburg maintained their impressive run with Sascha Riether’s 85th minute match winner.
Elsewhere, Hoffenheim crashed 3-0 at VfL Bochum after having two players sent off, while Hertha Berlin were beaten 2-0 at Hannover 96.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) is considering reducing its pitch clock by two seconds to help players better adjust to the rules applied at the World Baseball Classic (WBC). The proposal aims to shorten the pitch timer from 25 seconds to 23 seconds with the bases empty, and from 20 seconds to 18 seconds with runners on base. Currently, the WBC mandates that pitchers deliver a pitch every 18 seconds with the bases empty and 15 seconds with runners on base. The issue was raised during a pre-season CPBL managers’ meeting on Tuesday by Rakuten Monkeys bench and batting
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