MUNICH: Bundesliga record signing Harry Kane scored twice in his first league appearance in front of a home crowd on Sunday to steer champions Bayern Munich to a 3-1 victory over Augsburg and make it two wins out of two matches.

Kane, who joined for a league record 100 million euros ($108 million) from Tottenham Hotspur and also scored in last week’s league-opening 4-0 win at Werder Bremen as well as setting up another, got on the scoresheet with a 40th-minute penalty before adding their third goal in the 69th.

Kane has hit the ground running since his arrival in Munich just over two weeks ago and has now become only the third Bayern player to score three times in his first two league games and the first since Adolfo Valencia in 1993.

The striker was brought in to improve Bayern’s scoring after struggling since the departure of Robert Lewandowski last year, and allow them to challenge for the Champions League once more.

“A really good win,” Kane, 30, told DAZN after the match. “The first league game in our stadium — I wanted to make sure we got the three points.”

Augsburg defended well under relentless Bayern pressure but they went behind on 32 minutes when Felix Udoukhai put through his own goal.

A VAR intervention found an Augsburg handball just inside the box minutes later, bringing Kane to the spot. Kane blasted the ball nervelessly down the middle to double Bayern’s lead.

Kane scored another midway through the second half, expertly dinking a pass from Canada wing-back Alphonso Davies over Augsburg ‘keeper Finn Dahmen to seal the win.

Augsburg did manage to cut the deficit in the 86th when they caught the Bayern defence napping and Dion Beljo rounded keeper Sven Ulreich.

Bayern are on six points, as many as Union Berlin, Bayer Leverkusen, VfL Wolfsburg and Freiburg.

Eintracht Frankfurt forward Omar Marmoush equalised in injury time to snatch a point in a 1-1 draw at derby rivals Mainz.

With the clock winding down, the home side were in front after Lee Jae-sung’s first-half header, but Frankfurt’s Junior Dina Ebimbe dribbled past three Mainz defenders and cut back to give Marmoush a simple tap in to level the scores.

Frankfurt had been reduced to 10 men after winger Ansgar Knauff had kicked Leandro Barreiro in the face as he challenged for the ball with 30 minutes remaining.

The dismissal galvanised the visitors and Marmoush’s goal, the Egyptian’s first since moving from Wolfsburg in the summer, ensured they remain unbeaten this season.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2023