Bayern crowned champion after thrilling final day
Dortmund would have won its first title since 2011-12 had it beaten Mainz, but a 2-2 draw opened the door for Bayern.
Bayern Munich’s players celebrate with the trophy
BERLIN: Bayern Munich won an 11th consecutive Bundesliga title as it beat Cologne to overtake Borussia Dortmund on a thrilling final day.
Dortmund would have won its first title since 2011-12 had it beaten Mainz, but a 2-2 draw opened the door for Bayern.
It took advantage thanks to Jamal Musiala’s 89th-minute winner.
A Cologne penalty had cancelled out Kingsley Coman’s earlier strike, but Musiala sent the away fans wild.
Dortmund’s players and fans were left dejected despite coming back from 2-0 down at the break, with Sebastian Haller also having a first-half penalty saved.
It looked like its title rival had handed it the title when Cologne’s Dejan Ljubicic levelled from the penalty spot with just nine minutes remaining.
But Musiala curled home in the closing seconds to break the hearts of Dortmund, which equalised late on through Nicklas Sule.
It marked a successful end to the season for boss Thomas Tuchel, who replaced Julian Nagelsmann in March.
Bayern Munich was bidding to become the first team to win the Bundesliga title having started the final day in second since 1999-2000, when it beat Bayer Leverkusen to the crown.
For that to happen it needed to beat Cologne and hope Dortmund failed to win at home against a Mainz team with nothing to play for.
After eight minutes, Bayern went top thanks to a strike from France winger Coman, who has won the title in every season as a professional footballer with Paris St-Germain, Juventus and Bayern.
Soon after, Andreas Hanche-Olsen gave Mainz its shock lead. Dortmund had a glorious chance to level but Haller’s poor penalty was saved. It was his first spot-kick for the club, having missed the first half of this season as he recovered from testicular cancer.
