LONDON (Reuters) – Two second-half goals in less than three minutes from Serge Gnabry and another from prolific Pole Robert Lewandowski earned Bayern Munich a thumping 3-0 victory at Chelsea in their Champions League last 16, first leg on Tuesday.
The German champions, clearly a class apart from their hosts, piled on the pressure from the start of the match and bossed Stamford Bridge with flair and 63% possession.
“It was a really good result for us,” Bayern coach Hansi Flick said. “The team performed exactly how we planned and we were very focused how we played.”
It was a bad night for Chelsea, whose home form under Frank Lampard has been suspect all season, and their misery was complete in the 83rd minute when wing back Marcos Alonso was sent off for violent conduct after he caught Lewandowski in the face with his arm.
For former Arsenal forward Gnabry they were the fifth and sixth goals in London in the Champions League this season after he scored four in Bayern’s 7-2 demolition of Tottenham Hotspur in the group stages.
The first against Chelsea in the 51st minute involved a one-two between Gnabry and Lewandowski, who cut back from the edge of the area when Chelsea’s retreating defence expected him to shoot, leaving Gnabry with an easy finish from less than 10 metres.
Chelsea, run ragged most of the evening, had barely got their breath back when Lewandowski and Gnabry exchanged passes halfway down the pitch before Gnabry raced away to score.
A smiling Flick said he was very happy Gnabry was now plying his trade in Germany rather than England.
“I saw how he played at Arsenal and I followed his career intently,” Flick said.
“You could tell what he could do for the first Champions League match I saw him… he really impressed me and with Bayern Munich he’s really developing well. So I’m very happy that he’s playing with us.”
