MUNICH: Harry Kane went off injured as Bayern Munich were held 1-1 at home by champions Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Robert Andrich put the visitors ahead after 31 minutes in Munich but Aleksandar Pavlovic pulled leaders Bayern level eight minutes later with an incredible long range shot.

England captain Kane, who was largely anonymous in front of goal, hobbled off with a foot injury with four minutes remaining after a collision with Leverkusen’s Amine Adli. Bayern sporting director Max Eberl said he was unsure about Kane’s injury status, but added “when Harry leaves the field means something because he’s pretty tough”. “(The incident) doesn’t look good, but we hope he’s made strong out of good English wood and nothing’s broken.”

Bayern’s Serge Gnabry hit the woodwork twice in the best chance of the second half, but Leverkusen held on for a draw. “We deserved more, definitely,” said Bayern captain Manuel Neuer. “We were clearly the better team and had the better chances. The goal we conceded was frustrating.”

Bayern had been champions for 11 seasons before Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen turned German football on its head last season, becoming the first side to complete an unbeaten league and cup double. The clash was spiteful in the early stages, with Bayern’s Dayot Upamecano shown a yellow card for kicking the ball away and Leverkusen coach Alonso receiving the same punishment for arguing with the referee.

Bayern were completely dominant early, depriving Alonso’s men of the ball and setting up camp outside the Leverkusen box. The hosts’ best chance was a 19th-minute free kick, with Michael Olise curling the ball inches over. Leverkusen took the lead completely against the run of play however, Andrich smashing in a low shot from a corner given away by a Pavlovic error. Despite bossing field position, Bayern’s equalizer came through a stunning shot from well outside the box, Pavlovic making good on his error with a superb curling effort. The hosts started the second half like they did the first, Gnabry hitting the woodwork twice in a matter of seconds after a classy Kane pass.

In the final minutes, both sides seemed content to hold on for a draw, but while Bayern remain three points clear of third-placed Leverkusen, Kane’s late injury will be a worry ahead of a packed fixture schedule.

Leipzig on fire

Earlier Benjamin Sesko scored twice in five first-half minutes as RB Leipzig’s young attack combined superbly to beat Augsburg 4-0 at home. Sesko struck twice and laid on an assist for fellow 21-year-old Xavi Simons, who himself assisted a goal for 24-year-old Lois Openda. Augsburg’s best chance of the game came when they had a penalty saved midway through the first half.

Leipzig coach Marco Rose credited his team’s “belief in ourselves”, saying “we were anything but happy” after a three-game winless run. Last year’s runners-up Stuttgart came back to earth after Sunday’s 5-1 demolition of Borussia Dortmund, needing a stoppage-time Deniz Undav goal to snatch a 2-2 draw at Wolfsburg. Jonas Wind put the Wolves in front 10 minutes in but the visitors equalized late in the first half, Enzo Millot tapping in a rebound after his penalty was saved.

Stuttgart were on the wrong end of a tough call midway through the second half, Atakan Karazor sent from the park for a second yellow despite looking the victim of a foul. Wolfsburg hit the lead five minutes later through Mohammed Amoura, who escaped a send off through a VAR review. Undav’s late strike saved his side from a tough defeat.

St Pauli won their first top-division match since February 2011 with a 3-0 victory at a wasteful and unlucky Freiburg. A double from Elias Saad and a goal from Dapo Afolayan took St Pauli to victory, with Freiburg having two goals ruled out for offside, alongside a saved penalty attempt from Vincenzo Grifo.

Tomas Cvancara’s goal in the sixth minute of stoppage time took Borussia Moenchengladbach to a 1-0 home win over Union Berlin, ending the latter’s unbeaten record in the league this season. Goals from Marvin Pieringer and Jan Schoeppner took Heidenheim to a 2-0 win at 10-man Mainz. — AFP