Bundesliga: Robert Lewandowski returns to scoring form as Bayern Munich beat Schalke
Bayern Munich moved within touching distance of their fourth consecutive championship with a routine win over Schalke. Lewandowski added another two to his impressive scoring record, while Vidal scored the third.
Bayern Munich 3-0 Schalke (Lewandowski 53', 64', Vidal 73') After sitting out of Bayern Munich's Champions League win at Benfica, Robert Lewandowski returned to the side to score a double to extend their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to 10 points. The Polish center forward - without a goal in his last three matches - decided the outcome with two simple finishes in the second half, before Arturo Vidal continued his excellent streak with a third. Given Bayern Munich's season has still to reach its crescendo as a semifinal meeting with Atletico Madrid looms large, it was little surprise that Guardiola made six changes from Wednesday's win over Benfica. Rafinha, Juan Bernat, Medhi Benatia, Kingsley Coman, Mario Götze and Robert Lewandowski all returned to the starting lineup. Javi Martinez was left out of the matchday squad, but will be available for the German Cup semifinal against Werder Bremen on Tuesday. Bernat and Costa looked menacing on the left in the opening stages, with the Brazilian winger firing a half volley over the crossbar in the first minute. But Schalke's compact 5-4-1 formation was impenetrable for the entirety of the first half - as alarming as it got for the Royal Blues was a glancing header from Lewandowski that was matched by Schalke keeper Ralf Fährmann. Schalke were clearly tetchy in possession and squandered a number of decent counter-attacking situations. Junior Caicara, advanced on the right flank, forayed into positions behind Bernat, but his passing lacked precision. Manuel Neuer's only real task against his former club was to pluck a header out of the air from Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. Sharp-shooter Lewandowski scores Bayern upped the tempo of their play after the break and peppered Fährmann's goal with a handful of efforts. On 51 minutes, Arturo Vidal, who has become one of the team's most important players in recent weeks, spun past his marker and dragged his shot inches past the target. Two minutes later, Vidal's header set up Lewandowski whose control and finish broke the deadlock. The 27-year-old striker took his tally to 27 for the season, finishing off an incisive move that emanated from Rafinha's work rate on the right-hand side. Lewandowski has been peerless in his consistency over the season, however the form of Chilean midfielder Vidal has been pivotal in the last few weeks. Vidal's form has been impressive since a man-of-the-match performance in Bayern's 4-2 win over Juventus in the last 16 of the Champions League. He scored a double on international duty with Chile before gaining Bayern a first leg lead over Benfica. His thumping finish on Wednesday gave Bayern the important cushion to book a spot in the semifinals. With 17 minutes left, Vidal finished off Franck Ribery's cross to score his fourth goal in five games and seal the win that moved Bayern a step closer to clinching the league title. Schalke, tied on 45 points with Mainz and Borussia Mönchengladbach, are four points off fourth-placed Hertha with four games remaining.
Bundesliga
Bundesliga Frauen-Bundesliga Basketball_Bundesliga Austrian_Football_Bundesliga 2016–17_Bundesliga 2013–14_Bundesliga Handball-Bundesliga 2007–08_Bundesliga Bundesliga_(baseball) 2012–13_Bundesliga 2014–15_Bundesliga 2011–12_Bundesliga Handball-Bundesliga_(women) 2008–09_Bundesliga 2009–10_Bundesliga 2015–16_Bundesliga
Robert Lewandowski
Robert_Lewandowski
Bayern Munich
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Schalke
FC_Schalke_04 Schalke_(Harz) Gelsenkirchen FC_Schalke_04_(esports)
Bayern Munich
FC_Bayern_Munich FC_Bayern_Munich_(basketball) FC_Bayern_Munich_(women) FC_Bayern_Munich_Junior_Team FC_Bayern_Munich_II 1975–76_FC_Bayern_Munich_season
Schalke
FC_Schalke_04 Schalke_(Harz) Gelsenkirchen FC_Schalke_04_(esports)
Lewandowski
Robert_Lewandowski Mariusz_Lewandowski Lewandowski Sascha_Lewandowski
Vidal
Arturo_Vidal Vidal_blanc Vidal,_California Vidal Paul_Vidal María_Eugenia_Vidal Jon_Xabier_Vidal Vital_(grape) Juan_Carlos_Vidal Dre_&_Vidal Javan_Vidal Carlos_Vidal Gore_Vidal
Bayern Munich
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Schalke
FC_Schalke_04 Schalke_(Harz) Gelsenkirchen FC_Schalke_04_(esports)
Lewandowski
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Vidal
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Bayern Munich
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Champions League
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Benfica
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Robert Lewandowski
Robert_Lewandowski
Bundesliga
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Polish
Arturo Vidal
Arturo_Vidal
Bayern Munich
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Atletico Madrid
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Guardiola
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Wednesday
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Juan Bernat
Juan_Bernat
Medhi Benatia
Medhi_Benatia
Kingsley Coman
Kingsley_Coman
Mario Götze
Mario_Götze
Robert Lewandowski
Robert_Lewandowski
Javi Martinez
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German Cup
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Werder Bremen
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Juan_Bernat Bernat,_Iran Bernard_of_Gothia
Costa
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Brazilian
Schalke
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Royal Blues
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Lewandowski
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Schalke
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keeper
Ralf Fährmann
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Schalke
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Junior Caicara
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Bernat
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Manuel Neuer
Manuel_Neuer
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
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Lewandowski
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Fährmann
Fährmann
Arturo Vidal
Arturo_Vidal
Vidal
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Lewandowski
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Rafinha
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Lewandowski
Robert_Lewandowski Mariusz_Lewandowski Lewandowski Sascha_Lewandowski
Chilean
midfielder
Vidal
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Vidal
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Bayern
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Juventus
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Champions League
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Chile
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Bayern
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Benfica
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Wednesday
Bayern
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Vidal
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Franck Ribery
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Bayern
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Schalke
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Mainz
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Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia_Mönchengladbach
Hertha
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Royal Blues
FC_Schalke_04
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Bundesliga
Bundesliga
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Bayern Munich
FC_Bayern_Munich
iptc::15000000 slot::keyword sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::organization type::sport_team
Robert Lewandowski
Robert_Lewandowski
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Arturo Vidal
Arturo_Vidal
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Juan Bernat
Juan_Bernat
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Ralf Fährmann
Ralf_Fährmann
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Champions League
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Benfica
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Polish
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Atletico Madrid
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Guardiola
Pep_Guardiola
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_coach
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topic::none type::time type::value
Rafinha
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Medhi Benatia
Medhi_Benatia
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_player
Kingsley Coman
Kingsley_Coman
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_player
Mario Götze
Mario_Götze
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_player
Javi Martinez
Javi_Martínez
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_player
German Cup
DFB-Pokal
iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 sport_event::20001116 topic::sport type::competition type::entity type::event type::sport_competition
Werder Bremen
SV_Werder_Bremen
iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::organization type::sport_team
Tuesday
topic::none type::time type::value
Costa
Douglas_Costa
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_player
Brazilian
topic::none type::gpe0-x type::other
keeper
topic::none type::role type::value
Junior Caicara
Júnior_Caiçara
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_player
Manuel Neuer
Manuel_Neuer
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Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
Klaas-Jan_Huntelaar
gender::male iptc::15000000 sport::20001065 topic::sport type::entity type::person type::sport_player
Sharp-shooter
topic::none type::role type::value
Chilean
topic::none type::gpe0-x type::other
midfielder
topic::none type::role type::value
Juventus
Juventus_F.C.
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Chile
Chile_national_football_team
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Franck Ribery
Franck_Ribéry
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Mainz
1._FSV_Mainz_05
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Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia_Mönchengladbach
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Hertha
Hertha_BSC
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Brazil
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Germany
slot::in
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Spain
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Chile