Bayern Munich suffered their first Bundesliga defeat under coach Vincent Kompany, losing 2-1 to Mainz on Saturday, allowing second-placed Leverkusen to narrow Bayern’s lead at the top to four points after a 2-0 victory at Augsburg,
Lee Jae-Sung scored in both halves against a surprisingly underperforming Bayern, who were unable to rely on several key first-team players, including Harry Kane, Manuel Neuer, Alphonso Davies, Kingsley Coman, Serge Gnabry, and Joao Palhinha.
Kane’s absence was especially evident in the first half, where the league leaders had a dominant hold on possession but failed to convert any of their half-chances into goals.
Mainz had a surprisingly strong home record against the German powerhouses, winning three of their last four league matches at home against Bayern.
The home team struck just before half-time, with Lee taking advantage of a poor clearance from his South Korean teammate Min-Jae Kim to score. Despite being aware that Leverkusen was winning in Augsburg, Bayern showed a lack of precision and energy after the break.
Mainz quickly exploited this, with Lee scoring again after Armindo Sieb delivered a clever cross that Lee finished on the spin.
Leroy Sane managed to tap in a deflected shot from Joshua Kimmich in the 87th minute, giving the league leaders a glimmer of hope, but Mainz held on for a huge home victory. This win propelled Mainz, who had fought against relegation the previous season, to sixth place.
