Bayern Munich needed a stoppage-time goal to see off Celtic and secure a place in the last 16 of the Champions League on Tuesday, while AC Milan were dumped out by Feyenoord and both Club Brugge and Benfica also advanced. In Germany, Bayern were defending a 2-1 lead over Celtic in their play-off tie from last week’s first leg but the Bundesliga leaders were unable to put the tie to bed, with Harry Kane hitting the bar before half-time.

Instead it was Celtic who went ahead on the night on 63 minutes thanks to Nicolas Kuehn, the former Bayern player, who slotted low into the net after a failed attempt to win the ball by Kim Min-jae.

That meant the tie was heading for extra time, but Bayern ultimately would not need to go that far as they scored in the fourth minute of injury time.

Alphonso Davies bundled the ball in from close range to make the score 1-1 on the night and clinch the tie for six-time European champions Bayern 3-2 on aggregate.

Vincent Kompany‘s team will find out their last-16 opponents when the draw is made on Friday, but it will be either German rivals Bayer Leverkusen or Atletico Madrid.

“Of course, we always want to dominate and be much better than the opponent, especially here. But the result is always the most important thing,” Kompany told UEFA.com

It was a heartbreaking way for Celtic to go out but the Scottish champions will take heart from their performance over the two legs.

“It never looked like we were going to concede the goal that we did and sadly for us, we did. I can only take immense pride from the performance and the guys gave everything,” said Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers.

Earlier, seven-time European Cup winners Milan were eliminated by Feyenoord, a 1-1 draw at San Siro taking the Dutch club through 2-1 on aggregate.

Santiago Gimenez, playing against the club he left just last month, had put Milan ahead on the night from close range in the first minute to level the tie on aggregate.

However, Milan had Theo Hernandez sent off early in the second half for a second booking, and Feyenoord levelled on the night through Julian Carranza on 73 minutes.

The visitors had Givairo Read shown a red card at the end of the game after they had held on to win the tie.

They could now come back to San Siro in the next round, with Inter Milan and Arsenal their two possible opponents.

Benfica and Club Brugge through

In Lisbon, Benfica drew 3-3 at home with Monaco to win their play-off tie 4-3 on aggregate and go through to play either Barcelona or Liverpool next.

Having won 1-0 in Monaco last week, the Portuguese giants extended their aggregate lead when Kerem Akturkoglu opened the scoring on the night midway through the first half.

Monaco came roaring back with Takumi Minamino and Eliesse Ben Seghir netting either side of half-time to level the tie on aggregate.

Vangelis Pavlidis scored a penalty, his seventh goal in his last six Champions League games, to make it 2-2 on the night, only for substitute George Ilenikhena to hit back for Monaco.

However, the tie swung decisively back towards Benfica as Orkun Kokcu made it 3-3 on the night on 84 minutes.

“It was a tough night, we knew Monaco would put pressure on us from the start and we felt it, we didn’t play our best game,” Kokcu told broadcaster SportTV.

“Still, we’re happy to have progressed to the last 16. I’m happy to have contributed to the result.”

Teenage starlet Chemsdine Talbi scored twice as Club Brugge claimed a 3-1 victory away to Atalanta in Italy to win their tie 5-2 on aggregate.

Talbi’s brace was followed by a superb Ferran Jutgla strike as the Belgians built on their 2-1 win at home in last week’s first leg and advanced to a last 16 tie against either Lille or Aston Villa.

Atalanta had 29 attempts on goal but were punished on the break by the Belgians and Ademola Lookman’s reply at the start of the second half was scant consolation.

Lookman also had a penalty saved while Atalanta captain Rafael Toloi was sent off late on, as last season’s Europa League winners bowed out.

The remaining play-off second legs will take place on Wednesday, with the standout fixture seeing Real Madrid defend a 3-2 first-leg lead at home to Manchester City.

Defending champions Bayer Leverkusen host Bayern Munich on Saturday needing a “perfect day” to defeat the Bavarian giants and keep the Bundesliga title race alive. Bayern come to Leverkusen with an eight-point lead at the top of the table. Both sides have only lost once in the league this season but Leverkusen have been let down by their inability to win close games, with seven draws compared to Bayern’s three. Stung by failing to win a title last year, Vincent Kompany‘s Bayern are in ominous form, having won seven league games in a row.

A win, or even a draw on Saturday for Bayern, will deal a likely fatal blow to Leverkusen’s hopes of winning back-to-back titles.

However, Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso‘s record against Bayern will give the hosts hope.

Since taking over Leverkusen in October 2022, Alonso has won three and drawn two of five games against Bayern.

The most recent of those victories came in December, when Leverkusen eliminated Bayern from the German Cup in Munich after home captain Manuel Neuer saw red for the first time in his career.

In an interview with the Bundesliga website on Thursday, Leverkusen talisman Granit Xhaka backed his side.

“We can make it difficult for anyone, including Bayern Munich, we need a perfect day to beat this team, but I’m convinced we can do this,” he said.

“We won’t play for a draw, we want to win every game, whether that’s against Bayern on Saturday, or against any other team.

“Everything is still in our hands, we’ll keep going, keep believing, and try and win the next games.”

Unlike Bayern, who battled to a 2-1 victory at Celtic in the Champions League play-offs on Wednesday, Leverkusen could put their feet up in midweek, having finished in the top eight of the competition.

Both sides are benefiting from rich veins of form from their strikers.

Having struggled with a hamstring injury in December, Harry Kane has bounced back for Bayern and has nine goals in his past eight games in all competitions.

Leverkusen’s Patrik Schick is also among the goals. The Czech striker has 14 goals in his past 11 league outings.

Elsewhere, Borussia Dortmund can build on their midweek 3-0 Champions League win at Sporting Lisbon, their first win under new coach Niko Kovac, when they play at rock-bottom Bochum on Saturday.

Third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt, who have drawn their past three games, will also want to get their top-four bid back on track when they face Holstein Kiel.

One to watch: Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)

Sitting behind Patrick Schick, Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz has pulled the strings all season.

So far this season, nine of Schick’s 20 goals have been assisted by Wirtz.

Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro, who oversaw Wirtz’s last contract extension with the club in 2022, told AFP in an interview on Thursday the 21-year-old “definitely makes it look easy — and that’s what makes him special.

“He has a view of the whole field. His technique, his first touch is amazing… Not that many are on his level.

Key stats

24 – St Pauli sit 14th but have conceded just 24 goals in 21 games. Only league leaders Bayern Munich have conceded fewer, with 19.

October 2021 – The date of Bayern’s last win in Leverkusen.

21 in 19 – Harry Kane has 21 goals in 19 league games this campaign, including nine penalties.

Vincent Kompany saluted Bayern Munich’s composure and ignored the “crazy” atmosphere at Celtic to seize control of the Champions League play-off round with a 2-1 win in the first leg on Wednesday. Bayern boss Kompany was concerned about the potential for Celtic to be fuelled by the raucous 60,000 sell-out crowd in Glasgow. But the Bundesliga leaders produced a mature display that took the sting out of the Celtic roar for long periods. Michael Olise’s thunderous drive into the roof of the net from 15 yards put Bayern ahead on the stroke of half-time.

England captain Harry Kane doubled Bayern’s lead with a close-range volley from Joshua Kimmich‘s corner four minutes after the interval.

At that point Bayern were in complete command, but they eased off in the closing stages and Daizen Maeda’s 79th minute header gave Celtic a glimmer of hope.

Bayern keeper Manuel Neuer had to make a good save from Alistair Johnston to ensure the visitors held onto their lead in a frantic finale.

Kompany was relieved to hear the final whistle, but insisted he was delighted with the way Bayern inflicted Celtic’s first home defeat in 33 games in all competitions.

“It’s cliche to say, but it’s the first half of the game. Overall, it’s a really great result,” he said.

“I know this place, I know it transcends performance sometimes. We dealt really well with the atmosphere for long spells before it could go too crazy.

“The last 10 minutes we had to defend and we did that well. Of course, you can feel in those moments, if the game comes alive it is a special place.

“The fans haven’t seen many losses here, especially in Europe, so we appreciate the importance of the game and the victory.”

‘One more shot’

Bayern will be favourites to advance to the last 16 when Celtic visit Munich for the second leg on February 18.

But before then, Kompany’s men face a crucial clash on Saturday with champions Bayer Leverkusen, who are eight points behind Bayern in the title race.

“We’re also pretty decent at home so we’ll look to play on that as well,” Kompany said.

“We have an important game on Saturday, so we’ll switch our focus to that.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers took heart from the way his side recovered from their ultra-cautious start.

Rodgers is confident the Scottish Premiership leaders can rattle Bayern in the return as they look to reach the last 16 for the first time since 2012-13.

“At 2-1, Bayern Munich are hanging on. That’s what we can take from it. We’ve got one more shot,” Rodgers said.

“It’s a new level for a lot of the players, they’ve done absolutely great. Let’s go and have no regrets and see where it takes us.

“By the end, Bayern are happy for the final whistle. We’ve shown we can play football and be a threat. We’re still right in the tie.”

Celtic treated Bayern with too much respect in the first half, sitting deep for long spells rather than taking the fight to their star-studded opponents.

Rodgers admitted it was only when Celtic went two goals behind that they finally threw caution to the wind.

“The last 25 minutes, we started to press the game and you see what it brought — aggression. Our football starts to come alive and then we get the goal,” he said.

“With Bayern’s quality and the number of goals they can score, sometimes these can be out of sight but that wasn’t the case at all.

“We were always going to be the underdog. But what must never happen is, you must never be broken. We kept fighting and got a reward for that.”

Champions League Live Streaming Knockout Phase Play-Off Draw Live Telecast© X (Twitter)

Bayer Leverkusen are taking the belief gained from finishing in the top eight of the Champions League standings into the latter stages of their Bundesliga title defence. Xabi Alonso‘s men, who sit six points behind leaders Bayern Munich in second place in the German top flight, host Hoffenheim this weekend fresh from securing direct passage to the Champions League last 16 by beating Sparta Prague on Wednesday.

“That’s why we play in the Champions League — to compete at the highest level,” said Leverkusen defender Jonathan Tah.

“We have shown that we can compete with anyone at this level.”

Leverkusen have only lost one domestic match since the start of last season in a remarkable run.

After a sluggish start to the Bundesliga campaign, Leverkusen have powered back into contention despite last weekend’s draw with RB Leipzig, when they let a two-goal lead slip.

Bayern, who face Holstein Kiel on Saturday, will visit Leverkusen between their two Champions League play-off round legs after missing out on a top-eight finish in Europe.

The Bavarians have not won at Leverkusen since 2021 and Alonso is yet to suffer a defeat by Bayern since taking charge.

But Tah does not expect Bayern’s packed schedule to give his team any edge in the battle for the Bundesliga.

“Bayern Munich are used to playing every three days,” he said.

Leverkusen were also boosted by the news Victor Boniface’s planned move to Saudi Arabia has fallen through, giving the defending champions extra attacking power to keep fighting on three fronts.

‘Everything in Bayern’s hands’

Bayern have not yet added any senior players to their squad in the transfer market, which closes on Monday.

But coach Vincent Kompany is not overly worried about having to face a Champions League play-off against either his former club Manchester City or Celtic.

“We have to rebuild our momentum,” Kompany said after his side’s win — their seventh in eight games in all competitions — over Slovan Bratislava was not enough to sneak into the top eight.

“It was clear the big games would come… From now on, everything is in our hands again.”

Elsewhere, Borussia Dortmund travel to Heidenheim on Saturday for interim boss Mike Tullberg’s last game in charge before former Bayern, Eintracht Frankfurt and Monaco coach Niko Kovac takes over.

Despite sitting in 11th place with just one win in their last eight league games, Dortmund are still within striking distance of the top four.

They are six points behind fourth-placed Stuttgart.

One to watch: Angelo Stiller (Stuttgart)

Despite Paris Saint-Germain ending their Champions League hopes on Wednesday, Stuttgart still had something to celebrate, with Germany midfielder Angelo Stiller extending his contract with the club by a year until 2028.

The 23-year-old’s performances for Stuttgart, who are back in the Champions League qualification places after finishing second last season, earned him a Germany call-up. 

The talented midfielder, who came through Bayern Munich’s youth set-up, is at the heart of everything Stuttgart do in attack and defence.

“(He is) an important building block in the team’s structure,” Stuttgart sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth said of Stiller.

Key stats

31 points – Mainz’s 31 points from 19 games is the second-best run in the club’s history after 2010-11, when the Thomas Tuchel-coached side had 33.

Eight – Dortmund’s Serhou Guirassy has eight league goals from 16 games, one fewer than the nine he has from eight Champions League matches this season.

0 – Second-division Magdeburg have not won a home game this season but still sit third in the Bundesliga 2 table.

Fixtures (1430 GMT unless stated)

Friday

Werder Bremen v Mainz (1930)

Saturday

St Pauli v Augsburg, Bayern Munich v Holstein Kiel, Bochum v Freiburg, Stuttgart v Borussia Moenchengladbach, Heidenheim v Borussia Dortmund, Union Berlin v RB Leipzig (1730)

Sunday

Eintracht Frankfurt v Wolfsburg, Bayer Leverkusen v Hoffenheim (1630)

Pep Guardiola said he cannot see Manchester City winning the Champions League on current form, but believes his side will be better when they face the might of either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich next month. City needed a second-half fightback from 1-0 down to beat Club Brugge 3-1 on Wednesday to avoid crashing out before the knockout stages for the first time since 2012. Their reward could be just a stay of execution against either the defending champions or Guardiola’s former club Bayern.

City have also been a diminished force in the Premier League this season, where they sit fourth — 12 points behind leaders Liverpool.

But Guardiola is hopeful they will be strengthened by the return of key players from injury and new signings Omar Marmoush, Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis in the coming weeks.

“Right now no. I’m so realistic,” said Guardiola when asked if the 2023 champions could win the competition again.

“Madrid is back in terms of results, Bayern played an incredible season so far with (coach) Vinny (Kompany). If we have to play tomorrow it will be difficult but in two weeks we don’t know.

“We are going to prepare well, be fit and try it and see what happens.”

Despite their struggles, City have won six and drawn one of their last eight games.

“At least lately we are getting results,” added Guardiola. “We are fourth in Premier League, not in the title race, no way, but still we are there.

“FA Cup we are there. Sometimes it is impossible today but tomorrow the mindset, the vibes change and I’m pretty sure we will try and create problems for Madrid or Bayern.”

City’s narrow escape played a central role on a dramatic final night for the first season of the Champions League’s new Swiss model format.

Guardiola said he could appreciate the change has made the early stages of the competition more appealing to fans, even if it caused him far more tension.

And he believes other big clubs will face similar struggles in the future.

“As a spectator how many things (were still to be decided) is nice. The problem is we play more games in October, November, December and in the future important teams will live what we lived this season.

“We were on the verge, 45 minutes from being out. It is an incredible lesson for me, the club that nothing is (taken) for granted.

“Congratulate the team because still they have pride and we’ll see how we arrive in two weeks.”

Harry Kane scored as Bayern Munich won 2-1 at Freiburg on Saturday to move six points clear of Bayer Leverkusen, who threw away a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at RB Leipzig. Kane and English compatriot Eric Dier created the opener in the 15th minute. Dier found Kane who drilled a low shot through the fingers of Freiburg goalkeeper Noah Atubolu. The goal was Kane’s first from open play since mid-November and his 17th in 17 league games this season. Bayern doubled their lead after 54 minutes when Kim Min-jae outmuscled Atubolu and headed in a Joshua Kimmich corner.

Freiburg made Bayern sweat when Matthias Ginter headed in a corner with 22 minutes remaining, but the German giants held firm to bounce back from Wednesday’s surprise 3-0 Champions League loss at Feyenoord.

“We’ve played better games than that,” Kimmich told Sky Germany.

“But that is exactly what you need sometimes. We deserved to win.”

Bayern’s win means defending champions Leverkusen are now six points behind the league leaders, after they dropped points in the league for the first time since early November at Leipzig.

Florian Wirtz impressed throughout and was instrumental in Leverkusen’s opener.

The Germany midfielder shrugged off two defenders with a jink and shot against the post, with Patrik Schick well placed to tap in and put Leverkusen in front after 18 minutes.

Leverkusen’s controversial second, scored on the 36-minute mark, was also created by Wirtz.

Near the sideline, the 21-year-old won the ball from Leipzig’s David Raum, while appearing to sink his studs into the defender’s leg.

With Raum on the ground, Wirtz dribbled goalwards and cut the ball back to Aleix Garcia, who calmly slotted home.

Raum had his revenge just five minutes later, thumping in a deflected free kick off the crossbar to cut Leverkusen’s advantage.

Leipzig equalised from another set piece with five minutes remaining. Xavi Simons sent a spiralling free kick into the box which Leverkusen defender Edmond Tapsoba turned into his own net.

“We’re not satisfied, things could have been better but they could have been worse. We’ll keep going,” said Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso.

Schick added: “We weren’t effective enough up front and Leipzig played well today. Not many teams win here.”

Dortmund struggles continue

In their first match since sacking coach Nuri Sahin, 10-man Borussia Dortmund also let a two-goal lead slip to draw 2-2 at home against Werder Bremen.

Dortmund’s chances took an early hit when centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck was red carded for a last-man foul after 21 minutes.

The hosts were dangerous despite the disadvantage and took the lead seven minutes later when Julian Brandt found Serhou Guirassy who headed in his eighth league goal of the season.

Dortmund looked in charge when Guirassy’s 51st-minute cross was turned into his own net by Bremen defender Marco Friedl, but Bremen levelled things up with two goals in eight minutes.

Former Dortmund midfielder Leonardo Bittencourt unleashed a rocket from outside the box before Marvin Ducksch caught the hosts napping, running in behind and scoring to level things up.

Dortmund sporting director Lars Ricken confirmed after the game that interim coach Mike Tullberg would remain in charge for Wednesday’s home Champions League clash with Shakhtar Donetsk.

Elsewhere, Mainz continued their impressive run this season, beating Stuttgart 2-0 at home thanks to goals from Nelson Weiper and Anthony Caci.

Relegation candidates last campaign, Mainz’s win sends them sixth, one point behind Stuttgart and Leipzig and in contention for a Champions League place.

A stoppage time goal from Keven Schlotterbeck took Augsburg to a 2-1 home win over Heidenheim.

In Saturday’s late game, Borussia Moenchengladbach host last-placed Bochum.

Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane will hope to overcome a slump in front of goal when his side travel to face Freiburg on Saturday. With 16 goals in 16 games this season, Kane still tops the Bundesliga goalscoring charts, but the numbers bely a trend which may worry the league leaders. Kane has not scored from open play since November, a run of seven games in all competitions, although the England captain’s remarkable reliability from the spot has glossed over the dip in form. He has scored two penalties in that time, extending his tally to 27 consecutive spot-kicks converted for club and country dating back to his 2022 World Cup quarter-final miss against France.

In Wednesday’s 3-0 Champions League loss at Feyenoord, Kane and Bayern were dominant with the ball but were unable to convert a number of chances.

The 31-year-old missed four games in December with a hamstring strain and is clearly not yet back to 100 percent.

“Of course we need his goals,” Bayern’s sporting director Max Eberl said of Kane.

“He hasn’t scored but he knows that and is probably more critical of himself than anyone else.

“He’s experienced many highs and a few lows. If there’s anyone who can handle a dip, it’s Harry Kane.”

Freiburg coach Julian Schuster said Thursday his side will be facing a Bayern side stung by defeat.

“When a team loses, there’s automatically a bit of extra spice next time around. And we all know what it means when Bayern suffer a loss.”

In his first season in charge, Schuster has his side sitting eighth. Freiburg are particularly strong in their Black Forest home, where they have lost just once in nine games.

Schuster said Bayern’s midweek loss shows it is possible “to find gaps and to hurt them”.

Leverkusen head to RB Leipzig on Saturday, knowing they could close the gap at the top to just one point if they win and Bayern lose.

Xabi Alonso‘s defending champions had their own midweek setback, losing 2-1 at Atletico Madrid despite taking the lead in Spain.

Leipzig are 10 points behind Leverkusen but remain the only side to have beaten them in the league since May 2023, winning 3-2 away in August.

Leipzig defender David Raum says Leverkusen are “another calibre” of team but promised “to make it as difficult as possible for them”.

Dortmund’s 2-1 Champions League loss at Bologna on Tuesday was followed a day later by the sacking of coach Nuri Sahin.

Mike Tullberg, Sahin’s interim replacement, will be on the sidelines in Saturday’s home clash with Werder Bremen tasked with getting Dortmund back to winning ways.

Last season’s Champions League finalists sit 10th in the league and have won just one of their past nine games in all competitions.

One to watch: Patrik SchickWhile Kane may be struggling for his best level, the same cannot be said of Bayer Leverkusen frontman Patrik Schick.

The Czech striker has scored 12 goals in his past eight games — none of which have come from the penalty spot.

Schick’s form means Leverkusen have not missed the injured Victor Boniface, who looks set to return to the squad this weekend.

The 28-year-old Schick spent the 2019-20 season on loan at Leipzig, netting 10 goals in 28 games, but he has never scored against his former employers.

Goals from Benjamin Sesko and Lois Openda took Leipzig to a 2-1 home win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday, days out from their trip to league leaders Bayern Munich. Sesko headed in a rebound after 19 minutes but Frankfurt’s Nathaniel Brown equalised with a clever solo effort on the 41-minute mark, hitting a low shot in off the right upright. Openda, who was unlucky to be called offside when Leipzig’s Christoph Baumgartner scored just one minute into the game, put the hosts back in front with a trademark rocket after 51 minutes. 

Leipzig, who lost 3-2 to Aston Villa on Tuesday to become the first club eliminated from the Champions League midweek, held on to grab all three points.

Leipzig’s Baumgartner toasted his side’s “hard bit of work”.

He added: “We’ve got quality up front and we’ve got speed.

“We’ve got to keep going like this against Munich. We might not have as many chances as we did today, but we’ll go there and see what’s possible.”

The win meant Leipzig drew level with Frankfurt on 27 points, six behind Bayern Munich, who were outclassed 2-1 by lowly Mainz on Saturday. 

Leipzig face Bayern in Munich on Friday. Leipzig could move within three points of the league leaders with a win, while opening the door for defending champions Bayer Leverkusen, who are currently four points behind in second.

Frankfurt, who were eliminated from the German Cup by Leipzig at the same venue 11 days ago, are winless in four in all competitions. 

Dortmund ‘unbelievably bad’

Borussia Dortmund’s recent struggles continued when former BVB forward Jacob Bruun Larsen netted a last-gasp equaliser for Hoffenheim in a 1-1 draw earlier on Sunday at the Westfalenstadion.

Beset by injuries across the park, Dortmund have not won since November in the league and now sit eighth, 11 points off Bayern despite the latter losing on Saturday.

In his first league start since October 2023, American forward Gio Reyna put Dortmund in front in the first minute of the second half, chesting down a headed clearance before blasting home. 

In stoppage time, however, Bruun Larsen was in the right place to score after Dortmund failed to defend a throw-in. 

Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck, named in the starting XI despite being stretchered off against Barcelona on Wednesday, slammed his side. 

“It’s the worst game we’ve played at home,” Schlotterbeck said, calling the performance “unbelievably bad” and “impossible to explain”.

Coach Nuri Sahin agreed, saying he was “really disturbed” by “the lack of energy” on the pitch.

“There are no excuses,” Sahin said, adding it would be “too easy” to blame the club’s injuries.

Hoffenheim now have five points from four league fixtures since Christian Ilzer took over in November.

Stuttgart won 3-1 away at Heidenheim to climb up to sixth.

Germany defender Maximilian Mittelstaedt put Stuttgart in front with a smart finish after bursting into the area on 20 minutes. 

Heidenheim starlet Paul Wanner, on loan from Bayern Munich, equalised with an excellent long-range effort on 41 minutes. 

Stuttgart however hit back just before half-time, Enzo Millot heading in a Josha Vagnoman cross. 

Stuttgart sealed the result from the penalty spot when Nick Woltemade converted a spot-kick in the 85th minute, his fourth goal in his past three games.

“It was a tough fight,” Mittelstaedt told DAZN. “Heidenheim had the knife between their teeth. We threw everything into it.”

Surprise runners-up last season, Stuttgart have struggled to adjust to the demands of a return to the Champions League. Sebastian Hoeness’ side have come into form recently however, with Sunday’s win their fourth in a row.

Conference League participants Heidenheim have also struggled due to Europe this season and are third last, in the relegation playoff spot, with 10 points from 14 games. 

Two goals from Jae-sung Lee took Mainz to a shock 2-1 home win over Bayern Munich on Saturday, handing coach Vincent Kompany his first league loss. Lee scored in each half against an uncharacteristically poor Bayern, who are now just four points clear after Bayer Leverkusen’s 2-0 win at Augsburg. Injuries meant Kompany was unable to call on several first team regulars including Harry Kane, Manuel Neuer, Alphonso Davies, Kingsley Coman, Serge Gnabry and Joao Palhinha.

Kane’s absence was particularly telling in the first half, with the league leaders dominating possession but unable to convert any of their half chances into a goal. 

Mainz boasted a better-than-expected home record against the German giants, having won three of their past four home league games over Bayern. 

The home side struck shortly before half-time, Lee taking advantage of a poor clearance from his South Korea teammate Min-Jae Kim to hammer home. 

Even with the knowledge that Leverkusen were ahead in Augsburg, Bayern came out poorer after half-time, lacking precision and energy. 

Mainz soon capitalised through Lee again. Armindo Sieb threaded a clever cross goalwards for Lee to collect before blasting home on the spin. 

Leroy Sane tapped in a deflected Joshua Kimmich shot in the 87th minute to give the league leaders hope, but Mainz held firm for a famous home win. 

The win moved Mainz, who battled relegation last season, up to sixth. 

Defending champions Leverkusen continued their recent resurgence, winning comfortably 2-0 at Augsburg, their seventh victory in a row. 

Martin Terrier put Leverkusen in front 14 minutes in, curling the ball home with his first touch after a lovely low cross from Jeremie Frimpong. 

Florian Wirtz added a second in the 40th minute when he controlled the ball, sold the Augsburg defence a dummy before skipping a shot across the grass and into the bottom corner. 

A double from Alassane Plea and goals to Robin Hack and Tim Kleindienst took Borussia Moenchengladbach to a 4-1 win over Holstein Kiel. 

Gladbach have now lost just one of their past eight league games while Kiel, playing their first season in the top flight, sit second last. 

In Saturday’s late game, promoted St Pauli host Werder Bremen, while Champions League participants Borussia Dortmund, Stuttgart and RB Leipzig are all in action on Sunday.