Loss at Bayern means Reds must defend 3-2 lead against Arsenal
Ten-man Bayern Munich eased into the Champions League knockout stages after demolishing Greece's Olympiakos 4-0 on Tuesday to secure top spot in Group F with a game to spare.
The German champions, who had Holger Badstuber sent off early in the second half with a straight red card, were unstoppable in the opening 20 minutes,
scoring three times to put the game to bed early.
Douglas Costa struck after eight minutes, Robert Lewandowski doubled the lead after 16 minutes with Thomas Mueller adding another four minutes later as dazed Olympiakos found no answer to the continuous attacks.
Kingsley Coman headed in Bayern's fourth goal in the 70th minute as Bayern moved up to 12 points in the group ahead of their final game at Dinamo Zagreb on December 9. Olympiakos, in second place on nine, now needs a point against Arsenal to secure a spot in the last 16.
Bayern, in spectacular form this season and having lost just once in all competitions, put Olympiakos under early pressure and it quickly paid off with
Brazilian Costa drilling in on the rebound after keeper Roberto's weak save from Jerome Boateng's long-range effort.
Poland striker Lewandowski doubled their lead with his fifth goal in five games in the competition, picking up a Coman effort to fire in eight minutes later while an easy tap-in by Mueller from an Arjen Robben header that caught the defence completely off guard made it 3-0 for the hosts.
With central defender Badstuber making his first start following his muscle injury in April, Bayern was never threatened from open play in the first half
and kept pounding the Greek goal at will.
Olympiakos, who had won its previous three games in the group after its opening loss to Bayern in September, had to wait until the 44th for its first chance, with Luka Milivojevic sending a free kick from the edge of the box narrowly wide.
Badstuber, however, was too slow for Brown Ideye in the 53rd, holding on to the quick Nigerian forward outside the box to get his marching orders on a
miserable comeback for the injury-plagued Germany international.
The Greeks enjoyed a bit more possession but Coman got in on the act heading in Mueller's nod for Bayern's 14th goal in their three group home games.
[Reuters]
