Wolfsburg 2-2 Bayern Munich: Player ratings as Bundesliga champions end season with a draw
By Sean Walsh
Bayern Munich blew a two-goal lead in their final Bundesliga match of the season away at Wolfsburg and had to settle for a 2-2 draw.
Julian Nagelsmann's men secured the league title weeks ago and have stumbled through their closing games, ending the campaign on a run of three matches without a win.
The start of the match was delayed due to visibility issues after home fans set off another of smoke bombs, but after a five-minute wait the match finally kicked off.
Wolfsburg goalkeeper Koen Casteels got away with a lazy clearance early on as Jamal Musiala's charge down rolled just wide, before the 19-year-old stung the palms of the Belgian with a driven strike from distance.
Leon Goretzka was denied soon after, as was want-away striker Robert Lewandowski - who saw his lashed half-volley saved by Casteels.
After a scare of their own, when Maxence Lacroix crashed a header against the post, Bayern went in front through the unlikeliest of goal-scorers. Josip Stanisic the man to score, looping a header home from Joshua Kimmich's corner.
Die Roten thought they had doubled their lead with a sumptuous team goal six minutes later, with Musiala driving through midfield and playing a lovely one-two with Muller before poking past Casteels. However, Alphonso Davies was adjudged to have been offside and interfering with the goalkeeper's line of sight.
Stanisic had to be alert to deny Max Kruse a simple tap-in from Xaver Schlager's cross as Wolfsburg looked to hit Bayern on the counter, while the departing John Brooks headed over from a corner and Lukas Nmecha's 20-yard shot whistled past the post.
But Bayern grabbed their second when Muller's weak-foot cross was glanced on by Lewandowski, who easily got in front of Lacroix and nestled his header into the far corner. The Poland international should have grabbed his brace almost immediately from the resulting kick-off, but couldn't keep his shot from 15 yards on target.
Nagelsmann's men were made to pay for failing to clear their lines when Jonas Wind pulled one back, flicking up Max Kruse's cross and then unleashing a thunderous strike past Manuel Neuer.
And just after the break, Wolfsburg equalised after Kruse tapped in from a Micky van de Ven cross, ghosting in behind Lucas Hernandez to bring the hosts level.
Gnabry and Lewandowski both had shots blocked as Bayern looked to restore their lead, while Eric-Maxim Chuopo Moting flashed an effort across the face of goal. Fellow sub Leroy Sane spurned a great chance to win it late on but he was denied by the outstretched leg of Ridle Baku - before he again fluffed his lines when sent through one-on-one.
Bayern Munich player ratings vs Wolfsburg (3-4-2-1)
GK: Manuel Neuer - 4/10 - Kicking was uncharacteristically iffy and didn't command his box all too well.
CB: Josip Stanisic - 7/10 - Supposedly a much-loved and hard-working figure at Bayern, the young Croatian marked a rare start with his first Bundesliga goal. Flittered between playing as a centre-back and right-back throughout.
CB: Dayot Upamecano - 5/10 - Made a few recoveries, particularly with his great pace, but didn't look settled.
CB: Lucas Hernandez - 3/10 - Wolfsburg clearly identified Hernandez as a weak point in Bayern's team and targeted him repeatedly, making the most of his lapses in concentration.
RM: Serge Gnabry - 6/10 - Stretched play well but his final ball was lacking in quality.
CM: Joshua Kimmich - 7/10 - Controlled the game well for the most part but was susceptible to being caught too high up when Wolfsburg were chasing the game.
CM: Leon Goretzka - 5/10 - Didn't offer a lot at either end.
LM: Alphonso Davies - 7/10 - Had a field day running down the left wing. Like Gnabry lacked a final ball but he was the more threatening of the two wide men today.
AM: Thomas Muller - 9/10 - Was always lively and looked threatening throughout. One assist could have been four or five. Surprisingly subbed on the hour mark.
AM: Jamal Musiala - 8/10 - A joy to watch. Danced and dazzled between the lines so effortlessly and unfortunately had a superb goal chalked off.
CF: Robert Lewandowski - 7/10 - Scored his customary goal but was otherwise quiet.
SUB: Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting (60' for Muller) - 4/10 - Not anywhere near the quality of Muller, as you'd imagine.
SUB: Leroy Sane (68' for Gnabry) - 6/10 - Missed a couple of glorious opportunities late on.
SUB: Omar Richards (81' for Davies) - N/A
SUB: Christian Fruchtl (81' for Neuer) - N/A
SUB: Gabriel Vidovic (81' for Kimmich) - N/A