The Bundesliga Is Now Tough For Bayern Munich – Niko Kovac

Bayern Munich coach Niko Kovac said his side had taken “a first step” after beating Wolfsburg 3-1 for their first victory in four Bundesliga games.

The champions, down to 10 men after Arjen Robben’s second booking early in the second half, won thanks to a Robert Lewandowski brace and a late James Rodriguez goal to go second, four points behind leaders Borussia Dortmund.

“There was a lot of pressure on this match,” Kovac said at his postmatch news conference. “I can only compliment my team. That was a first step. You could see that Bayern not only have footballing qualities but also fighting qualities.

“In the Bundesliga, 18 clubs want to win, and it’s a basic at Bayern. There is only black and white these days. And if you win, everything is OK again. But it’s not that easy. Still, we won, we are happy and we hope we can build on it.”

Poland international Lewandowski opened the scoring after 30 minutes, and was on target again minutes after half-time when he intercepted a William header. Colombia star Rodriguez sealed the win with a shot from inside the box, with Lewandowski completing his Man of the Match performance with an assist.

However, Bayern will be without Robben for their next match at Mainz after he was booked for a dive and then again for a foul.

“That’s too harsh for me,” Kovac said. “It was a normal foul. And I don’t think it was a dive. Robben collides with his player. It was too harsh.”