Harry Kane sets new record as Bayern Munich earn crushing Bundesliga win
- Kane netted hat-trick as beleaguered Bayern return to form against Mainz
- England's captain hits 30-goal mark in maiden Bundesliga season
- Thomas Tuchel's Bayern still hoping to reel in Bayer Leverkusen in title race
Harry Kane has become the first player to score four hat-tricks in their debut Bundesliga season after starring in Bayern Munich's crushing 8-1 win over Mainz.
England's captain has now registered 36 goals in just 34 appearances across all competitions in a sparkling first year in Germany. The 30-year-old has also bagged ten assists in that time to reinforce his status as one of the world's best strikers.
Kane has taken just 25 Bundesliga games to reach 30 goals in the competition and was on hand to open the scoring for Bayern in a game Thomas Tuchel's side simply had to win.
Leon Goretzka doubled the advantage before Kane restored Bayern's two-goal cushion - Nadiem Amiri had reduced the arrears for Mainz just past the half-hour mark - in the seventh minute of added-on time.
Thomas Muller made it four two minutes after the break before Jamal Musiala profited from a superb Kane assist 14 minutes later - the former Tottenham marksman playing a superb cross-field pass in behind Mainz's defence to allow Musiala to cut inside and fire into the bottom corner.
Serge Gnabry added a sixth four minutes before Kane grabbed his third of the afternoon - a simple close-range header after former Spurs teammate Eric Dier had been denied from a Raphael Guerreiro corner.
Goretzka added the gloss to a sparkling Bayern win which Tuchel will hope can galvanise a push towards a 12th consecutive Bundesliga title. The Bavarian giants have fallen well below the exceptionally high standards expected of them - to the extent that former Chelsea and PSG boss Tuchel's exit this summer has already been confirmed.
Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen lead the way after 24 games and incredibly they are still unbeaten across all competitions. The Spaniard's fine work at Leverkusen, who have never won the Bundesliga title, has seen him linked with the top job at Bayern, although former club Liverpool are also interested as they prepare for life after Jurgen Klopp.
As for Kane, he's also become the first player to score two or more goals in eight different Bundesliga games across a debut season - the records continuing to tumble for a player Bayern committed to paying €100m for last summer.
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