Musiala stunner powers Bayern to win at St Pauli
Jamal Musiala's stunning first-half finish powered undefeated Bundesliga leader Bayern Munich to a nervy 1-0 victory at St. Pauli.
Bayern, fresh from its 1-0 UEFA Champions League win over Benfica courtesy of another Musiala goal, had the upper hand at the start.
St. Pauli, however, showed few nerves and gradually became more aggressive, carving out a couple of scoring chances of its own.
Bayern struck first, however, when Germany midfielder Musiala won possession before unleashing a ferocious shot from range that went in off the crossbar.
Promoted St. Pauli turned out to be a tough nut to crack with Bayern given little space to create chances in the second half and the hosts lurking on the break.
Victory leaves Bayern top on 26 points, five ahead of second-placed RB Leipzig after its stalemate with Borussia Monchengladbach later in the day.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said the result proved there are no easy games in the Bundesliga.
"When you look at what [Bayer] Leverkusen did in Bochum [a 1-1 draw] and what [Borussia] Dortmund did in Mainz [losing 3-1], there are no easy games and today was a tough game. It's a very good win for us," Kompany said.
"This game came at a tricky moment for us because we had a [UEFA] Champions League game on Wednesday [Thursday AEDT]," Kompany added.
"We played against a very compact team, with high energy and a very good game management. Even when we scored the first goal, they didn't panic and stayed patient.
"They put a bit more pressure towards the end of the game. I can value this win a lot."
