Heynckes proud of Bayern fight

Bayern Munich boss Jupp Heynckes praised his side after their hard-fought 2-1 win at Stuttgart, reserving particular praise for Mario Gomez.

The prolific striker grabbed a brace which cancelled out Christian Gentner’s early opener to give the Bavarian club a three-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga.

While being proud of his men, Heynckes was also keen to highlight the fact that there is still plenty of time left to run until the title is decided in May.

“There are still 18 games to play. The crucial thing was to come here today and win which you can never take for granted in Stuttgart,” Heynckes said.

“Especially towards the end where you could see some of my players began to look drained.”

The 66-year-old then spoke of Gomez, who has scored 15 Bundesliga goals this campaign.

“Gomez didn’t just score the two goals, he also worked really hard when we weren’t in possession. Games against Stuttgart are very special for him. Fortunately he’s scored both goals today and we really needed him,” Heynckes added.

Bayern are at home against Koln next weekend and a point will ensure they go into the mid-season break as Bundesliga leaders.