MUNICH: Robert Lewandowski scored a record-breaking 11-minute hat-trick to ship Bayern Munich crusing into the Champions League quarterfinals with a 7-1 win at house to Crimson Bull Salzburg on Tuesday. The Polish striker had 3 targets to his identify by way of the twenty third minute – the earliest any person has ever finished a hat-trick in a Champions League recreation – as Bayern shook off their early nerves to overwhelm Salzburg.
“This used to be without a doubt a observation from us, and it offers us hope that there’s extra like this to return,” Bayern captain Manuel Neuer instructed Amazon High after his aspect reached the final 8 for a listing twentieth time. Austrian champions Salzburg had held Bayern to a 1-1 draw within the first leg, however their hopes of an dissatisfied in Munich had been left in tatters when Lewandowski scored a tap-in and two consequences to ship Bayern on their approach to a well-known victory.
With simply ten mins and 27 seconds between Lewandowski’s first and 3rd targets, it used to be the quickest of the six hat-tricks the Pole has now scored within the Champions League. “We knew we needed to assault the field early lately and get Lewy into the sport, as a result of he’s so arduous to protect in opposition to,” stated Thomas Mueller. “All of us knew how vital this recreation used to be lately. If we were knocked out, it might had been an excessively unhappy subsequent 3 months for us,” he added.
Lewandowski from the spot
Bayern began with an attack-heavy 3-5-2, however they seemed nervy on the again and there have been probabilities at each results in the outlet mins. Lewandowski compelled a pointy save from Philipp Koehn with the primary assault of the sport, whilst Nicolas Capaldo used to be denied on the different finish by way of a super block from Kingsley Coman. Lewandowski gratefully tucked away a penalty to present Bayern the lead on 12 mins after he used to be introduced down by way of Maximilian Woeber within the field.
To start with, the lead didn’t appear to calm Bayern’s nerves, and Salzburg nearly equalized as Nicolas Seiwald fizzed a fierce shot over the bar on the different finish. However Lewandowski used to be in a predatory temper, and he quickly added two extra to finish his hat-trick and put the tie past the Austrian aspect. Having smashed a 2d penalty into the ground nook to double the lead, he added a 3rd at the counter-attack, chasing a free ball over the road after a one-on-one with Koehn.
Bayern had been now purring, and Serge Gnabry drilled house a crushingly inevitable fourth after a sublime passing transfer at the 30 minutes mark. Mueller curled a super shot into the ground nook to make it 5-0 in a while after part time, ahead of Bayern switched on cruise regulate. The visitors grabbed a comfort purpose with a medical counterattack 20 mins from time, 18-year-old Dane Maurits Kjaergaard smashing a Geoff-Hurst-like end into the highest nook previous Manuel Neuer. However the hosts had the ultimate as Mueller stroked house his 2d and Lewandowski arrange Sane for Bayern’s 7th a couple of mins from time. – AFP