In Augsburg, a Bavarian derby that began with Manuel Neuer’s worst possible touch ended with Bayern Munich still looking up at Borussia Dortmund. The Bundesliga champions drew 2-2 at the WWK Arena on Saturday, missing the chance to take first place and remaining two points behind Dortmund after a match in which four Bayern goals were ruled out.
The afternoon was barely under way when Robin Fellhauer struck after only eight seconds, setting a new Bundesliga record for the quickest goal. Luis Díaz had rolled the kick-off back towards Neuer, but the Bayern goalkeeper mishit his attempted clearance. Fellhauer seized on the mistake, beat Neuer to the loose ball and put Augsburg ahead before most of the stadium had settled into its seats. Neuer immediately apologised to his team-mates.
The previous fastest Bundesliga goals had arrived after nine seconds: Kevin Volland scored for Hoffenheim against Bayern in August 2015, while Karim Bellarabi did so for Bayer Leverkusen against Borussia Dortmund in August 2023.
Augsburg did not simply protect their early advantage. Juma Ba had an opportunity to double the home side’s lead as Bayern tried to recover their composure. The visitors gradually began to establish themselves, although Harry Kane’s first-half effort against the crossbar was their clearest opening before the interval. Michael Olise was unable to impose himself and showed frustration during parts of the contest.
Bayern thought they had found a way back five minutes into the second half, when Díaz finished with an acrobatic bicycle kick, only for the goal to be disallowed for offside. The equaliser eventually came in the 75th minute: Kane, named man of the match, supplied Ismael Saibari, who drove a right-footed finish past the Augsburg defence.
The hosts had another response in them. Ribeiro restored Augsburg’s lead after Brackelmann produced an excellent individual move, turning the game back in the home side’s favour. Bayern continued to build pressure and had two further goals disallowed while trailing 2-1, adding to their collection of cancelled finishes.
Nathaniel Brown finally made it 2-2, but Bayern could not find a winner despite pinning Augsburg deep in their own half during a tense closing spell. The home side endured wave after wave of late chances, yet held on for a draw that keeps Dortmund at the summit and leaves Bayern to reflect on an afternoon defined by Neuer’s eight-second error and a succession of decisions that denied them more than a point.
