Soccer Football - Bundesliga - FC Augsburg v Bayern Munich - WWK Arena, Augsburg, Germany - January 27, 2024 Bayern Munich's Alphonso Davies celebrates after the match REUTERS/Leonhard Simon
AUGSBURG, Germany (Reuters) -Injury-hit Bayern Munich battled to a 3-2 victory at Augsburg in the Bavarian derby on Saturday to cut the gap on Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen to two points.
First-half goals from 19-year-old Aleksandar Pavlovic and Alphonso Davies plus one from the league's top scorer Harry Kane took second-placed Bayern to 47 points.
Leverkusen, who missed many chances and had to settle for a 0-0 draw with visitors Borussia Moenchengladbach, are top of the standings on 49.
Champions Bayern, whose winger Kingsley Coman suffered a torn knee ligament and will be sidelined for several weeks, conceded two late penalties and Augsburg converted one of them in stoppage time.
"It was an unusual lineup for us with all the injuries and absences," said Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel. "We had a bit of luck at the start. We knew it was going to be tough against them. But then we got better and created lots of chances.
"In the end it got a bit turbulent with the two late penalties. Overall I am satisfied with the attitude and the performance of my team."
The hosts made a stronger start and put the ball in the net before a VAR review cancelled out the goal.
Bayern were missing nine players through injury or international duty, including Konrad Laimer, Joshua Kimmich and Dayot Upamecano, who were all injured in the midweek 1-0 home win over Union Berlin.
They took the lead, however, when teenager Plavlovic turned in the box and drilled home his first league goal in the 23rd minute.
A minute later, Coman had to be helped off the pitch, piling more pressure on an already depleted squad.
"FC Bayern will be without Kingsley Coman over the coming weeks after the France international suffered a torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee in Saturday’s 3-2 win away at Augsburg," the club said in a statement.
The Bavarians added a second goal deep in first half stoppage time when Davies rifled in a low shot.
Augsburg bounced back seven minutes after the restart as Ermedin Demirovic was left unmarked in the box and beat keeper Manuel Neuer with a glancing header to cut the deficit.
Kane tapped in his 23rd league goal in the 58th following a lengthy VAR review to restore Bayern's two-goal lead before Augsburg earned an 87th-minute penalty.
Neuer picked the right corner and palmed Sven Michel's spot kick wide but Demirovic beat him with another spot-kick in stoppage time to inject late drama into the game.
The defeat left Augsburg in 12th place on 21 points.
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Ken Ferris and Ed Osmond)
