NEW DELHI: Jae-sung Lee's brace propelled Mainz to an unexpected 2-1 victory against Bayern Munich at home on Saturday, marking Vincent Kompany's initial league defeat.
Lee netted in both halves against an unusually lacklustre Bayern, who now maintain only a four-point advantage following Bayer Leverkusen's 2-0 triumph at Augsburg.
Kompany faced selection challenges due to injuries, missing key players including Harry Kane, Manuel Neuer, Alphonso Davies, Kingsley Coman, Serge Gnabry and Joao Palhinha.
The absence of Kane was particularly evident in the opening half, as the table-toppers controlled possession but struggled to create meaningful opportunities.
Mainz demonstrated their impressive home record against the Bavarian side, having secured victories in three of their previous four home league encounters.
The hosts broke the deadlock before the interval when Lee capitalised on his South Korean compatriot Min-Jae Kim's poor clearance to score.
Despite awareness of Leverkusen's lead at Augsburg, Bayern's performance deteriorated after the break, lacking sharpness and dynamism.
Lee doubled Mainz's advantage when Armindo Sieb delivered an intelligent cross, allowing him to collect and finish with a turning shot.
Leroy Sane reduced the deficit in the 87th minute, converting Joshua Kimmich's deflected attempt, but Mainz secured a memorable victory.
The result elevated Mainz, previous season's relegation candidates, to sixth position.
Title holders Leverkusen extended their winning streak to seven matches with a convincing 2-0 victory at Augsburg.
Martin Terrier opened the scoring after 14 minutes, finishing first-time from Jeremie Frimpong's precise low cross.
Florian Wirtz extended the lead in the 40th minute, displaying excellent control and deception before placing his shot into the bottom corner.
Borussia Moenchengladbach secured a 4-1 victory over Holstein Kiel, with Alassane Plea scoring twice alongside goals from Robin Hack and Tim Kleindienst.
Gladbach have suffered only one defeat in their last eight league fixtures, while newcomers Kiel occupy the penultimate position.
Saturday's evening fixture sees St Pauli host Werder Bremen, with Sunday's matches featuring Champions League participants Borussia Dortmund, Stuttgart and RB Leipzig.
The TOI Sports Desk excels in a myriad of roles that capture the ...
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