Bayern rests key players while beating Leverkusen 3-0 to extend Bundesliga winning start

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BERLIN (AP) — Even while resting key players, Bayern Munich extended its record start to the season and ended Bayer Leverkusen’s Bundesliga-record 37-game unbeaten away run with a 3-0 win over the visitors on Saturday.

Tom Bischof sent Serge Gnabry through to open the scoring in the 25th minute, Konrad Laimer crossed for Nicolas Jackson to head the second goal in the 31st, and Raphaël Guerreiro forced an own goal from Loic Badé before the break.

Bayern coach Vincent Kompany made seven changes to the team that defeated Cologne in the German Cup on Wednesday, with star players Harry Kane, Michael Olise and Luis Díaz among those dropped to the bench. The 17-year-old Lennart Karl started.

Gnabry, Jackson and Karl made way for Kane, Díaz and Olise before the hour-mark, giving the three substitutes the chance to warm up for the trip to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday.

“It's normal that the opponents will take some motivation when they see a few players aren't there, but for us it was just important to keep the pace so high from the start that there's no doubt that we – OK, we don't have Harry, we don't have Mike, we don't have Lucho – but it's still not going to be an easy game for the opponents,” Kompany said.

Leverkusen, which was without the influential Álex Grimaldo because of muscular problems, had sent on 19-year-old Algeria forward Ibrahim Maza after the break. But the visiting team never looked anything near the team that broke Bayern’s domestic dominance in 2024.

“We were punished in three or four situations where we have to do better,” Leverkusen coach Kasper Hjulmand said. “Of course we're not happy with this situation. We have a lot to do, a lot of work, but altogether Bayern was the better team and we have to recognize that.”

Bayern hadn’t beaten Leverkusen in the Bundesliga since September 2022. But it stretched its winning start to the season to 15 games across all competitions, including the German Supercup.

Ivory Coast teenager Yan Diomande and Brazilian forward Rômulo helped Leipzig consolidate second place with a 3-1 win over Stuttgart.

The 18-year-old Diomande forced an own goal from Jeff Chabot before the break, then scored the second goal in the 53rd minute when he controlled Christoph Baumgartner’s punt forward and – despite facing two defenders – fired inside the right post.

It was his second Bundesliga goal since joining Leipzig from Spanish team Leganes in the offseason.

Substitute Tiago Tomás pulled one back for Stuttgart, but a mistake from goalkeeper Alexander Nübel, who lost control of the ball while attempting a trick to elude Rômulo, allowed the Brazilian to seal the result in stoppage time.

Borussia Mönchengladbach enjoyed a 4-0 win at St. Pauli, while Eintracht Frankfurt was held to a 1-1 draw at Heidenheim.

Frankfurt lost forward Can Uzun to an apparent hamstring injury midway through the first half.

Also, Werder Bremen drew at Mainz 1-1, and Union Berlin and Freiburg ground out a 0-0 draw.

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