A late goal from Franck Ribery fired Bayern Munich to a nervy 1-0 win over RB Leipzig on Wednesday, which saw the Bundesliga champion move to within six points of league leader Borussia Dortmund.
For long periods it looked as if Bayern would squander the opportunity given to it by Dortmund’s shock defeat by Fortuna Duesseldorf on Tuesday.
Both sides came within inches of taking the lead in the first half. Robert Lewandowski was denied by a fine save from Peter Gulacsi at one end, while Dayot Upamecano thundered a header against the crossbar at the other.
Niklas Suele and Joshua Kimmich both missed chances from close range in the second half.
Two red cards for Renato Sanches and Stefan Ilsanker crowned a scrappy game late on.
But not before Ribery had finally swept in an 83rd-minute winner to breathe new life into the title race.
The results : Schalke 04 1 (Wright 45+2) lost to Bayer Leverkusen 2 (Dragovic 26, Alario 35); Werder Bremen 1 (Gebre Selassie 57) drew with Hoffenheim 1 (Bittencourt 31).
Freiburg 1 (Waldschmidt (3-pen) drew with Hanover 1 (Felipe 14); Mainz 2 (Quaison 10, 36) drew with Eintracht Frankfurt 2 (Jovic 31, 45+1).
Bayern Munich 1 (Ribery 83) bt RB Leipzig 0 .
