JAMES RODRIGUEZ SCORED his first Bayern Munich hat-trick as Niko Kovac’s side reclaimed top spot in the Bundesliga with a 6-0 home thrashing of Mainz that showcased the effervescent attacking that was lacking in their Champions League exit to Liverpool.
Borussia Dortmund leapfrogged Bayern with a 3-2 win at Hertha Berlin on Saturday, earned thanks to a late goal from captain Marco Reus, but the champions responded with their 13th win in their last 14 Bundesliga matches.
First-half goals from Robert Lewandowski, James and Kingsley Coman set up a crushing victory that sends Bayern above Dortmund on goal difference, with the leaders set to meet in a potential title decider on April 6 at the Allianz Arena.
James netted twice more after the break to claim the match ball before Alphonso Davies recorded his first Bundesliga goal, the champions having scored 17 times in their last three league games.
Bayern made a blistering start and led inside three minutes, Lewandowski steering home a near-post volley from David Alaba’s left-wing cross.
The early onslaught continued with Coman rattling the crossbar and James forcing an excellent save from goalkeeper Florian Muller with a powerful low drive.
Bayern’s inevitable second goal arrived in the 33rd minute, Joshua Kimmich’s ball into the box chested down superbly by Leon Goretzka with James sliding home a fine finish.
And it was 3-0 before the break, Mainz losing the ball on halfway with Goretzka sending Coman clear, the winger cutting inside off the left to whip a superb strike across the helpless Muller.
Mainz could not stem the tide after the interval either, James finding the bottom-left corner with a curling 20-yard effort in the 51st minute before then securing his treble with a sublime chip.
Bayern made it back-to-back 6-0 home wins in the league by completing the scoring in the 70th minute. Muller denied Lewandowski but he was unable to stop teenager Davies smashing in the rebound.
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You made a show of yourself. From the bus incident to this very day. Used to be a massive Mcgregor fan but lost all respect for him at this stage. Wish he’d actually step away from the sport. They should just call him money Mcgregor
@Willy Motley: all mouth. I never listened to the stuff that went on outside the cage, but watched keenly what happened inside, and there used to be a difference, now he is just a joke inside and outside. He won’t resurrect his career now with all that has happened unless he drops down the weight again.
@Bungee Aky: A fighter that has never successfully defended either title that he won in UFC.. Absolutely joke that he has the name he has..
@Tom Kenny: he did well while he was on the way up, but he cut his own time at the top short and the fall was quicker than the rise. No humility, no class, no longevity. He will be remembered as the best, greatest, brightest flash in the pan that ever happened.
He was more interested in promoting his whiskey..how couldnt you give someone like Khabib no respect, the man never lost a round in 20 odd fights
Who cares ??
@Desmond Cassidy: you do apparently.
If Mcgregor gets another crack at Khabib and beats him then he’ll be a big hero again. But he seems to have lost the hunger. He has shown with Nate Diaz that you can never write him off but he seems to have been on a downward spiral since the Mayweather money rolled in.
@Stanley Baggins:
Motivation or not, he’ll never beat Khabib even if he fights him 100 times.
@Stanley Baggins: lol not happening.
I will give the guy credit for mouthing his way to the top, but not a nice guy in or outside the octagon/ring, he could of really been an Irish legend but his behavior has made him nothing more then a laughing stock, money won’t buy him class something he is seriously lacking,
The money mayweathers ruined him.
Aldo done it for 10 years and was caught naively in 13 seconds as he was beyond wound up.
McGregor lauded his own talking game and aldo never got his rematch shot.
McGregor says he was caught in a fight where he wasn’t up to much and ended in his second loss and should get a rematch just because.
With his stardust waning and a bit of perspective its easier for people to see hes the Kardashian of UFC , took on a persona popular with the majority and played it expertly through modern media.
A distasteful genius with talent in all the wrong places.May he and the rest of the kardashian culture be plagued with no privacy and a life in the public eye for selling there souls for a few million quid.
@baw baw: @baw baw: To write McGregor off as nothing more than Khardasian culture is a bit revisionist, while in recent times he has become a mere parody of himself, it would be foolish to discard how good he was at his peak.
His persona only became what it was through his huge performances on the biggest stage. Against both Mendes and Aldo he heaped pressure on himself by talking a big and confident game and backed it up in the octogon. Without those performances his quick wit would have been nothing more than a cheap novelty. He has proven himself against a lot of top fighters and his lose to Khabib doesn’t take anything away from that.
I do however agree that he is not entitled to an immediate rematch and nor should he want one, he needs to tune up, get a few wins under his belt and his head back in the game before he could pose any threat to Khabib.
The idea that he could come back after two years on the session and beat him in the first place was ludicrous and thinking he could jump straight back in with him now is even more so.