When Harry Kane laces up his boots, magic usually follows. And in Bayern Munich’s 2-1 win over Boca Juniors, the England captain was at it again, scoring one and assisting the winner to help the German side reach the Club World Cup knockout stages.
Bayern Munich beat 2-1 Boca Juniors
Kane opened the scoring in the 18th minute, calmly stroking home from 10 yards out after a slick move. Boca, however, weren’t there to play tourist. Miguel Merentiel produced a delightful equaliser in the second half to throw the game wide open again.
But cometh the hour, cometh the Kane. With just six minutes left, he poked the ball into the path of former Crystal Palace winger Michael Olise, who made no mistake with a smooth, side-footed finish from the edge of the area.
Cue the celebrations.
“Big performance from the guys,” superior player of the match Kane told Dazn. “We knew it wasn’t going to be easy and we knew we were coming into a hostile environment. It is great to get the goal and qualify.
“It is a massive tournament, playing against the best teams in the world, but it is us against us, that is the mindset and we have to compete at our best level. So far, so good.”
Bayern’s progress is nearly sealed. A draw in their final group game against Benfica will guarantee top spot and possibly set up a tantalizing last-16 tie with Chelsea, if the Blues sneak through in second place.
Star midfielder Jamal Musiala suffered an injury
However, all wasn’t rosy for Bayern. Star midfielder Jamal Musiala suffered an injury just 25 minutes after coming on as a substitute, limping off and raising some eyebrows in the Bayern camp.
For Boca Juniors, the defeat ended a proud run of nine unbeaten games for South American clubs in this revamped tournament. Still, their hopes aren’t completely dashed. If Benfica lose to Bayern and Boca can overturn a seven-goal difference, they might just slip into the knockouts by the back door.
Meanwhile, in the group’s other game, Portuguese side Benfica thrashed Auckland City 6-0. The New Zealand outfit are out of the tournament after conceding 16 goals in just two games. Ouch.
The Club World Cup is heating up and with Harry Kane in this kind of form, Bayern Munich might just be the team to beat.
