Schweinsteiger strikes as Bayern wait for title

Bayern Munich are virtually guaranteed their 25th German league title after Bastian Schweinsteiger's late goal sealed their 1-0 home win over Hertha Berlin on Saturday.

Schweinsteiger's 80th-minute winner leaves Bayern 15 points clear in the league table with only four games left and Pep Guardiola's side poised to finish the weekend with a third straight Bundesliga title.

But Munich's champagne must wait on ice until second-placed VfL Wolfsburg play at Borussia Moenchengladbach on Sunday, when a Wolves' defeat or draw would remove all mathematical doubt and confirm Bayern as champions.

After Bayern's stunning 6-1 Champions League quarter-final win over Porto on Tuesday, Guardiola's side struggled to breach Hertha's goal despite nearly 80 percent possesion.

"The title is almost ours, but we have to concentrate on other tasks," said Guardiola, whose team host a German Cup semi-final against Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday.

played with a lot of young players.

"We have heavy legs. You could see that today, but this is our job, we have to keep our heads clear."

Guardiola used the depth of his squad as teenage midfielder Gianluca Gaudino started for the second week running and fellow 18-year-old striker Sinan Kurt made his debut in the famous red shirt.

"We're down to the real bare bones. Every game is a surprise for us," added the former Barcelona coach.

Bayern finally got the breakthrough when midfielder Mitchell Weiser, who was playing out of position at left-back, beat two defenders on the right and put in a cross which found Schweinsteiger unmarked to fire home.

With the title effectively in the bag, Bayern are poised to take the first step towards repeating their 2013 treble of Champions League, Bundesliga and German Cup.

- Hamburg climb off bottom

Earlier, Hamburg boosted their hopes of avoiding an historic relegation with a dramatic 3-2 win over Augsburg to climb off the bottom of the table and up to 16th place.

Pierre-Michel Lasogga, who has been capped by Germany, was Hamburg's hero with two goals including the 71st-minute winner.

Hamburg are the only team to have never been relegated from Germany's top flight but Bruno Labbadia's side are now only one point from safety after picking up their first win in 10 matches.

They raced into a 2-0 lead with only 19 minutes gone only to be pegged back before Lasogga sealed the three points when he smashed home his shot.

Paderborn drop to the bottom of the table ahead of their home clash with Werder Bremen on Sunday.

Stuttgart remain second from bottom after throwing away a two-goal lead and having Czech midfielder Adam Hlousek sent off for a second yellow card in a 2-2 draw at home to Freiburg, who are just two points from the drop zone.

Schalke's 2-0 defeat to Mainz on Friday and Augsburg's loss in Hamburg left both Hoffenheim and Borussia Dortmund within striking distance of the Europa League places.

Dortmund, the 2013 Champions League finalists who are three points from a European place, eased to a 2-0 win at home to Eintracht Frankfurt.

Gabon winger Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang converted a first-half penalty then set up Japan attacking midfielder Shinji Kagawa's 34th-minute strike, with the win leaving Borussia eighth.

Seventh-placed Hoffenheim are two points from a Europa League spot after Sven Schipplock scored their winner in a 2-1 victory over Hanover 96, whose new coach Michael Frontzeck lost his first game in charge.

Bayer Leverkusen stay third after their 1-1 draw with Cologne as Julian Brandt's first-half goal was cancelled out by Bard Finne's late equaliser in the Rhine derby.

Moenchengladbach can knock Leverkusen from third place -- which carries an automatic Champions League place for next season -- when they host Wolfsburg on Sunday with the rest of the league waiting to see if the result will see Bayern crowned.
Source: AFP