Bayern Munich captain Manuel Neuer on Sunday said that the defending champions should have scored more, despite a 4-1 away win at Cologne sweeping them back to the top of the Bundesliga.
After RB Leipzig held top spot for 24 hours with a 3-0 home win against Werder Bremen on Saturday, Bayern raced into a 3-0 lead after just 12 minutes in Cologne.
“We could have scored up to 10 goals,” said Neuer, clearly irritated by the first-half chances Bayern wasted. “In any case, there was more to it than 4-1.”
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Serge Gnabry scored twice, while Robert Lewandowski and Kingsley Coman also netted.
Mark Uth, on loan from Schalke 04, scored Cologne’s consolation goal.
However, Bayern, who have won seven and drawn one of their past eight league games, rode their luck in the second half, but went unpunished despite dropping the tempo.
“If only one of those chances had gone in,” Cologne general manager Horst Heldt said after his side’s strikers Jhon Cordoba and Anthony Modeste wasted clear-cut chances.
Forward Thomas Mueller, who was outstanding with assists for Lewandowski and Coman, agreed that Bayern made life hard for themselves.
“When the lead is too big, we tend to make ourselves too comfortable. Then the opponent comes back at us,” Mueller said. “It’s human, but then we feel too safe, too comfortable. We know we can’t allow ourselves to do that, especially in the [UEFA] Champions League.”
Bayern face Chelsea in the Champions League round-of-16, first leg on Tuesday next week, with the return leg on March 18.
The result left Bayern a point ahead of Leipzig, while Borussia Dortmund, who thrashed Eintracht Frankfurt 4-0 on Friday, are third, four points back.
Schalke remained sixth after taking a point in Sunday evening’s goalless draw at FSV Mainz 05, who are one place and five points above the relegation places.
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