Bayern Munich strolled into the international break on the back of a breezy 3-0 victory at home to Freiburg on Sunday evening.
Leroy Sane lit up a match with a scoreline that did not accurately reflect the staggering dominance of the hosts. Freiburg didn't lay a glove on Bayern all game, mustering a pitiful tally of two shots, neither of which tested Sven Ulreich.
Despite Sunday's saunter, Bayern are only third in the Bundesliga, trailing Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen and surprise package Stuttgart.
How the game unfolded
Kingsley Coman ended his four-month wait for a goal with a cross. Bayern's wideman was too embarrassed to celebrate an overhit delivery from the right flank that freakishly soared over Noah Atubolu and onto the inside of the post.
Freiburg have never won a Bundesliga game away to Bayern but famously knocked Thomas Tuchel's side out of the DFB-Pokal on their most recent visit to the Allianz Arena. The Black Forest team secured that quarter-final shock thanks to plenty of good fortune and a formidable low block.
Yet, back then Leroy Sane was not in the same red-hot form that he has hit this term. The former Manchester City man sauntered through the crowd of black shirts parked on the edge of Freiburg's box, lending the ball to Harry Kane before prodding the return pass beyond Atubolu.
Bubbling with justified self-confidence, Sane eviscerated Freiburg's inexperienced youngster Merlin Rohl, slipping the ball between the 21-year-old's legs before stuffing it into the top corner. A fractional offside spotted by VAR denied Sane a sumptuous second.
If Sane wasn't involved in Bayern's attacking thrusts, Coman had his bootprints all over the move. With the game long since won, the Frenchman chopped onto his left foot to blast the ball into the net via Philipp Lienhart's back in the 85th minute.
The reigning champions never revved beyond second gear. Tuchel felt so comfortable that he took off Kane and even introduced Konrad Laimer to the backline, taking off the scarcely worked Dayot Upamecano in a mid-game experiment for future matches.
It would be no exaggeration to suggest that Bayern have had harder training sessions this season - you'd certainly hope so.
Bayern Munich player ratings (4-2-3-1)
GK: Sven Ulreich - 5/10 - Given practically nothing to do.
RB: Noussair Mazraoui - 6/10 - Unfazed by an early yellow card, Mazraoui strode forward whenever the opportunity presented itself.
CB: Dayot Upamecano - 7/10 - Carried out what little he had to do without much fuss.
CB: Kim Min-jae - 7/10 - Adventurous, if not always accurate, with his attempts to build from the back.
LB: Alphonso Davies - 7/10 - Frightening when he gets going, almost leaving scorch marks on the turf after his recovery runs.
CM: Leon Goretzka - 6/10 - Ratted around midfield enthusiastically while also crashing into Freiburg's box.
CM: Joshua Kimmich - 5/10 - Let impatience get the better of him on occasion when trying to break down Freiburg's rearguard.
AM: Thomas Muller - 5/10 - Struggled to get his teeth into the contest. Granted a rapturous reception upon his departure nonetheless.
RW: Kingsley Coman - 7/10 - Tuchel insisted pre-game that "it's only a matter of time until he gets back to the returns that he's had in previous years" but the Bayern boss probably didn't have Coman's flukey opener in mind.
ST: Harry Kane - 7/10 - Dropped deep to get plenty of touches yet still found himself at the sharp end of Bayern's attacking sequences.
LW: Leroy Sane - 8/10 - Played with a strut, breezing past defenders with an air of enviable arrogance.
Substitutions
SUB: Jamal Musiala (73' for Muller) - 5/10
SUB: Mathys Tel (73' for Kane) - 5/10
SUB: Konrad Laimer (77' for Upamecano) - N/A
SUB: Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (88' for Coman) - N/A
SUB: Frans Kratzig (88' for Kimmich) - N/A
Subs not used: Peretz (GK), Sarr
Manager
Thomas Tuchel - 6/10 - Repeatedly billed the match as a "tough contest" but avoided any whisper of discomfort by exploiting the weakness on Freiburg's flanks - which is conveniently where Bayern's strengths lie.
Player of the match: Leroy Sane (Bayern Munich)
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This article was originally published on 90min as Bayern Munich 3-0 Freiburg: Player ratings as Kane & Sane star in easy win.
