MUNICH, GERMANY (AFP) – Robert Lewandowski scored two goals in the second Champions League game this season when Bayern Munich drove to a 5-0 home win against Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday (September 29).

Lewandowski scored the 76th and 77th Champions League goals of his career when Bayern galloped with two goals in the lead at break before Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sane and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting scored in the second half.

Lewandowski also scored a brace in the 3-0 win against Barcelona two weeks ago and has scored a total of 24 goals in his last 18 Champions League games to underpin his credentials for being awarded the Ballon d’Or at the end of November.

This makes FC Bayern the front runner in Group E, two points ahead of their next opponent, Benfica, who beat Barcelona 3-0 on Wednesday in Lisbon.

“We did pretty well,” said man-of-the-match Sane. “We kept it calm at the back, showed our dominance and were strong in the finishing.”

The 25-year-old appeared to have scored the goal of the evening as he sent the ball into the net from the left wing but admitted it was a fluke.

“No, that wasn’t on purpose, I just wanted to put in a good cross. My technique is not that good,” he said with a smile.

Dynamo Kiev coach Mircea Lucescu chose a defensive line-up geared towards the Bundesliga champions, but the hosts took the lead after less than 12 minutes.

Kiev captain Serhiy Sydorchuk acted in the penalty area after a Joshua Kimmich corner and Lewandowski converted the resulting penalty in front of 25,000 fans, a third of the capacity of the Allianz Arena due to the Bavarian Covid-19 regulation.

The Polish striker scored his second goal when, after 27 minutes, Bayern’s relentless pressing resulted in Thomas Mueller threading a pass between two defenders so that Lewandowski shot into the goal.

This was the 19th Champions League game in which Lewandowski has scored two or more goals.

There was a threat of defeat in the first half when Sane’s shot hit the post 10 minutes before half-time.

In one of the rare cases where Dynamo came out of their own half, Uruguayan winger Carlos de Pena forced Manuel Neuer to throw the ball over the bar.

Poland’s international Tomasz Kedziora and Volodymyr Shepelev came off the bench to thwart Bayern again and again after half-time until Gnabry hit the net in the 68th minute.

Sane was close twice before Gnabry ended a counterattack that started in Bayern’s penalty area.

Sane, Mueller and Lewandowski sprinted up to support, Gnabry walked alone and fired a great shot that struck from the underside of the crossbar.

Sane’s attempt on the cross took Dynamo goalkeeper Heorhiy Bushchan by surprise when he was beaten by his narrow post.

Lewandowski stomped to a standing ovation eleven minutes before the end and his replacement Choupo-Moting headed Bayern fifth in the last lap.

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