HARRY KANE delivered a spectacular hat-trick while Michael Olise scored twice and new signing Luis Diaz added another goal in Bayern Munich’s emphatic 6-0 victory over RB Leipzig during Friday’s Bundesliga season opener.
Bayern’s high-profile Premier League acquisitions from the past three seasons demonstrated complete dominance as the Bavarian giants began their title defence in spectacular fashion.
Olise opened the scoring with two first-half strikes while Diaz contributed a goal between those efforts before Kane took centre stage after the interval.
Kane told the Bundesliga website “after we went into half-time 3-0 up, I said to myself ‘I have to get on that scoresheet’.”
The England captain completed his hat-trick during the second half with two assists coming from Diaz as Bayern overwhelmed their opponents with clinical finishing.
The 32-year-old striker now boasts eight Bundesliga hat-tricks since joining Bayern from Tottenham Hotspur during the 2023 summer transfer window.
Kane received a standing ovation when substituted with four minutes remaining as the defending champions delivered a powerful warning to their domestic rivals.
Lauding his team’s “great start to the season,“ Kane told Sky Germany: “we wanted to open the season with a statement and that’s exactly what we’ve done,“ adding “we were on top in all areas and were clinical when we needed to be, so we can enjoy this.”
Bayern captain Joshua Kimmich agreed with Kane’s assessment, saying “a 6-0 at home against Leipzig is clearly a statement, but what’s hard in football is to back it up in three days’ time.”
Kimmich praised Kane as an “absolute team player,“ telling Sky Germany the England captain “he loves to score but he sets goals up and gets back and helps in defence, that’s something special.”
The comprehensive defeat highlighted Leipzig’s significant gap to the top teams following their first transfer window under Jurgen Klopp’s global football leadership.
Leipzig captain David Raum called the match “a catastrophe”, saying his side lacked “mentality and willpower” in one-on-one situations.
Bayern entered the match under considerable pressure after losing several attacking players during the summer transfer window.
Diaz became the third major signing from English football in consecutive seasons following Kane and Olise’s arrivals from Tottenham and Crystal Palace respectively.
Olise continued his impressive adaptation to German football by smashing in the opening goal after 27 minutes before Diaz doubled the advantage five minutes later.
The Colombian international hammered the ball in off the crossbar from a Serge Gnabry assist before Olise added his second three minutes before halftime.
Kane then took control with three second-half goals including a 64th-minute strike from Diaz’s assist and two additional finishes in the 74th and 78th minutes.
The victory establishes Bayern as early favourites to secure their 13th Bundesliga title from the past 14 seasons while Leverkusen and Dortmund begin their campaigns on Saturday. – AFP
