Harry Kane continued his blistering start to the season with a second Bundesliga hat-trick as Bayern Munich powered past Hoffenheim 4-1 on Saturday. Meanwhile, newly promoted Hamburg ended a seven-year wait for a top-flight victory with a dramatic 2-1 win over Heidenheim.
Kane, who scored twice in Bayern’s midweek 3-1 Champions League win over Chelsea, delivered again in a heavily rotated side selected by Vincent Kompany, who made five changes — including a first start for Chelsea loanee Nicolas Jackson.
Despite a sluggish start from Bayern, it was Kane who broke the deadlock just before half-time, finishing clinically after a corner routine. Any hopes of a Hoffenheim upset were quickly extinguished early in the second half. Kane doubled the lead from the penalty spot after Bayern were awarded a soft handball decision. He completed his hat-trick with another spot-kick in the 77th minute, following a VAR review for a foul on Michael Olise.
Kane now has 13 goals in all competitions this season — eight in four Bundesliga matches — and has converted all 17 of his penalties since arriving in Germany. “Hat-trick Harry is what they called me in school,” the England captain joked to DAZN post-match. “That one kind of stuck. Penalties aren’t easy — I prepare and practise a lot. Any ball in the box, penalty or not, I back myself to hit the target.”
Vladimir Coufal pulled one back for Hoffenheim late on with a deflected free-kick, but former Hoffenheim winger Serge Gnabry added a fourth in stoppage time to secure Bayern’s seventh straight win in all competitions. Kane’s treble marked his ninth for the club and brought his overall tally to 98 goals in 103 appearances since joining Bayern in 2023.
In one of the day’s most emotional moments, Hamburg secured their first Bundesliga win in 2,688 days — a span of seven years and four months — with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Heidenheim. After failing to score in their first three matches since promotion, Luka Vuskovic finally broke the drought just before halftime, reacting quickly to tap home a rebound from a free-kick.
Arsenal loanee Fabio Vieira was instrumental in Hamburg’s second, gliding through midfield before laying off to Rayan Philippe, who slotted in coolly just past the hour mark. Heidenheim set up a frantic finale with Adam Koelle’s stoppage-time goal, but Hamburg held firm to claim a long-awaited and emotional three points.
Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, Freiburg cruised to a 3-0 win away at Werder Bremen, while Mainz stunned Augsburg 4-1 despite going down to 10 men early in the second half following Dominik Kohr’s dismissal. RB Leipzig will host promoted Cologne in Saturday’s late kickoff.
AFP
