Bayern and Bastian Schweinsteiger (l.) were held to a 1-1 draw in Freiburg
Bayern and Bastian Schweinsteiger (l.) were held to a 1-1 draw in Freiburg

Höfler earns Freiburg draw against Bayern

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Freiburg - A much-changed FC Bayern Munich were forced to settle for a point against SC Freiburg after Nicolas Höfler's late strike earned the hosts a 1-1 draw at the MAGE SOLAR Stadion.

Poor in possession

Xherdan Shaqiri scored the opener after 32 minutes when he slammed home Thomas Müller’s deep cross, but substitute Höfler equalised for Freiburg with just minutes remaining.

With Bayern’s UEFA Supercup clash in mind, head coach Pep Guardiola made seven changes to the team that beat 1. FC Nürnberg 2-0 on Saturday. His revamped side took a while to settle. Bayern were sloppy in possession during the opening stages and Freiburg almost took full advantage after 10 minutes when Oliver Sorg’s long-range effort forced Manuel Neuer into a good save.

The visitors soon improved and almost took the lead after 20 minutes when Dante’s long ball landed at Claudio Pizarro’s feet in the penalty area. The Peruvian succeeded in lobbing the ball over Baumann, but Christian Günter managed to clear the ball off the line before Müller could nod the ball into the unguarded net.

Shaqiri opens his account


After a shaky start, it seemed only a matter of time before the visitors would make the breakthrough and sure enough, it arrived just after the half-hour mark. Müller’s deep cross from the right found Shaqiri, who had time to take a touch before firing past a helpless Baumann at the near post. It was the Swiss international’s fifth Bundesliga goal and his first away from the Allianz Arena.

The hosts hadn’t beaten Bayern in 22 years prior to this match and there did not seem much hope of die Breisgauer pulling off an upset on this occasion as Bayern took control. Mario Götze almost doubled the visitors' advantage after being played through by Pizarro, but his low shot slid past Baumann's right-hand post.

Höfler to the rescue


Shaqiri almost doubled the visitors' advantage after the restart, forcing Baumann into a smart save with a powerful shot from the edge of the box. It was Freiburg, however, who almost grabbed the equaliser from the most unlikely of sources. Debutant Charles-Elie Laprévotte's curling effort from the edge of the box deserved a goal, but Neuer managed to get his fingertips to it, turning the ball onto the post and out for a corner.

Bayern then proceeded to spurn further chances, with Müller and Toni Kroos particularly culpable, and it came back to haunt them. The equaliser arrived after 86 minutes when substitute Höfler met Sebastian Freis' cross from the right with a calm finish, sending the home faithful into raptures and earning Christian Streich's side an unlikely point.

Line-ups and statistics

Matthew Howarth