Bayern Munich Tops AEK Athens in Champions League on Rapid-Fire Goals
ATHENS, Greece (AP) – Bayern Munich exploited a brief lapse in AEK Athens' determined defense to score twice in two minutes for a 2-0 win in the Champions League, easing pressure on the Bundesliga champions and coach Niko Kovac.
Shaking off a mistake-prone first half, Javi Martinez and Robert Lewandowski struck in the 61st and 63rd minutes at the Olympic Stadium for Bayern's second victory in Group E, as AEK suffered its third defeat.
Bayern stayed on the attack for most of the night but center backs Dmytro Chygrynskiy and Vasilis Lambropoulos stopped them from creating chances.
While keeping AEK's back line busy, Arjen Robben had produced little threat until his shot helped break the deadlock. It struck a wall of defenders, and Martinez slotted in the rebound.
Lewandowski silenced the 55,000 home fans two minutes later. Standout Serge Gnabry flicked the ball to Rafinha, who set up the Poland striker for the tap-in.
''The players stood up very well to such a great side but after those two goals it was hard to fight back,'' AEK coach Marios Ouzounidis. ''But I'm proud of their performance. They were very professional throughout the game.''
Bayern's players, who have struggled to show their usual domestic dominance this season, visibly relaxed after the goals. Lewandowski narrowly missed a third in the 67th when goalkeeper Vassilis Barkas scrambled to stop his effort on the goal line.
Germany striker Thomas Muller played for the last 15 minutes but made little impact.
