Duesseldorf, Germany (AP) – The most on-form striker in European football expects a goal when he meets opponents where every game is goal fest.
Bayern Munich and Harry Kane have scored 17 goals in nine club games this season, but will face Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga on Saturday.
Second-placed Borussia Dortmund faces third-placed Leipzig to compete to become Bayern’s closest rival.
Key Match Up
Bayern won every game they played this season, but hasn’t won in Frankfurt since 2022. Win or lose, Frankfurt is always funny. Eight games in all competitions resulted in a total of 47 goals (nearly six goals per game) after a 6-4 victory at Borussia Morchengladbach last week.
Dortmund is the only unbeaten team, two points from the top, with the exception of Bayern preparing to host Leipzig on Saturday. Leipzig recovered in a 6-0 loss to Bayern on the first day, winning four in a row since.
Kasper Hjulmand has not lost his first five games as coach of Bayer Leverkusen, but the team has yet to find that rhythm. Closing the defences recognized in each of these games could be key against Union Berlin on Saturday.
Players to watch
Kane’s goals are attracting attention, but Michael Oris’ contribution to Bayern is almost as important. The goal and two assists in Bayern’s 5-1 victory over Paphos on Tuesday scored or their respective goals this season in each of his Bundesliga and Champions League matches.
Nicholas Jackson finally scored in Bayern’s fifth match on Tuesday. His first goal arrived on loan from Chelsea. The chances of Kane being impacted by Senegale strikers in this strong form are limited.
Can Uzun is a key player in Frankfurt with five goals and three assists in five Bundesliga games when the 19-year-old offensive midfielder began to fulfill his potential.
Who’s out?
Leverkusen is without striker Patrik Schick for the first time in Bundesliga this season. He suffered a hamstring injury and missed a 1-1 draw against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday.
Mainz goalkeeper Robin Zentner misses the team’s game with Hamburger SV on Sunday as he serves the first game with the two-game ban. Zentner equips the red card last week for a reckless foul of Dortmund’s Karim Adeeemi.
From the field
The last placed Borussia Moenchladbach wins and drifts. Career coach Eugene Polanski heads for his third game on Sunday against Freiburg. That’s about as much as Gerald Soan managed before he was fired last month. Gladbach sports director Roland Wilkas resigned on Tuesday, saying the club will sort out the manager’s role before appointing a coach.
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