Mainz hand Bayern first league loss under Kompany

MAINZ, Germany: Two goals from Jae-sung Lee took Mainz to a shock 2-1 home win over Bayern Munich on Saturday, handing coach Vincent Kompany his first league loss.

Lee scored in each half against an uncharacteristically poor Bayern, who are now just four points clear after Bayer Leverkusen´s 2-0 win at Augsburg.

Injuries meant Kompany was unable to call on several first team regulars including Harry Kane, Manuel Neuer, Alphonso Davies, Kingsley Coman, Serge Gnabry and Joao Palhinha.

Kane´s absence was particularly telling in the first half, with the league leaders dominating possession but unable to convert any of their half chances into a goal.

Mainz boasted a better-than-expected home record against the German giants, having won three of their past four home league games over Bayern. The home side struck shortly before half-time, Lee taking advantage of a poor clearance from his South Korea teammate Min-Jae Kim to hammer home.

Even with the knowledge that Leverkusen were ahead in Augsburg, Bayern came out poorer after half-time, lacking precision and energy.

Mainz soon capitalised through Lee again. Armindo Sieb threaded a clever cross goalwards for Lee to collect before blasting home on the spin. Leroy Sane tapped in a deflected Joshua Kimmich shot in the 87th minute to give the league leaders hope, but Mainz held firm for a famous home win.

The result moved Mainz, who battled relegation last season, up to sixth. Defending champions Leverkusen continued their recent resurgence, winning comfortably 2-0 at Augsburg, their seventh victory in a row.