Harry Kane's Late Goal Saves Bayern Munich in German Cup Thriller

Wiesbaden, Germany, Aug 28 (AP): In a dramatic German Cup first-round clash, Bayern Munich narrowly avoided a shocking exit as Harry Kane's header in added time secured a 3-2 victory over third-division Wehen Wiesbaden. Kane's intervention came after an eventful match where he had already converted one penalty and saw another saved by the determined Wiesbaden goalkeeper, Florian Stritzel. Kane's decisive moment arrived in the fourth of five added minutes when he connected with Josip Stanisic's cross to clinch the win.

“It was a crazy game... We had numerous opportunities to seal the victory, but credit to Wiesbaden, they persevered,” Kane told Sky Sport. “We know we're not perfect yet. There's work to be done, and tonight's performance reflects that.” Bayern, familiar with unexpected cup exits in recent seasons, faced a similar threat, squandering a two-goal advantage.

Kane initially put Bayern in front from the penalty spot in the 16th minute following Ryan Johansson's foul on Sacha Boey. The goal marked Kane's 90th for Bayern in his 99th appearance, coming on the heels of a hat trick against Leipzig in the Bundesliga last week. Michael Olise doubled the lead in the 50th minute, capitalizing on a loose ball, but Wiesbaden responded with Fatih Kaya scoring on a swift counter-attack. Kaya's pace proved troublesome again, allowing Wiesbaden to equalize when he outpaced Jonathan Tah.

Kane had another chance to secure the victory from the spot but was denied by Stritzel, who impressively saved both his penalty and subsequent header. Just as extra time seemed inevitable, Stanisic delivered a deep cross, and Kane leapt above defender Justin Janitzek to nod home the winner. This tournament has posed challenges for Bayern in recent years. Since their last triumph in 2020, they've failed to progress past the quarterfinals, suffering second-round exits in three of the previous five years.

Bayern's triumph over Wiesbaden concluded the opening round of 32 games in the cup. All but one of the 18 Bundesliga teams advanced to the second round, with Werder Bremen being the lone casualty, falling to the second-tier side, Arminia Bielefeld, last season's runner-up. (AP)

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