Kovac slams Bayern defence after dramatic draw

Under-fire Bayern Munich coach Niko Kovac slammed his side’s defending in their dramatic 3-3 Bundesliga draw with Fortuna Dusseldorf at the Allianz Arena on Saturday.

Niklas Sule and Thomas Muller (2) had given the struggling Bavarian giants a 3-1 lead, but two goals in the last 13 minutes from Dodi Lukebakio – his second in the third minute of stoppage time completing a superb hat-trick – rescued a point for the visitors.

Despite their two-goal advantage, Bayern threw bodies forward in the closing stages, twice allowing Lukebakio plenty of space to run into and coolly finish past an exposed Manuel Neuer.

Kovac was less than impressed with his side’s defending and acknowledged they deserved to be punished.

“You can imagine how I feel internally,” he told a media conference.

“If you have the game under control and lead, then I am anything but happy – I am very angry. 

Schluss in der #AllianzArena: #FCBF95 3-3. pic.twitter.com/wtDaBhwVHn

— FC Bayern München (@FCBayern) November 24, 2018

“I just cannot understand that we did not realise the position we were in. 

“But far worse is the way we defended all three goals conceded. It does not matter if you are playing against a struggling side or Champions League team, these mistakes will be punished.”

The draw, coupled with Borussia Dortmund’s 2-1 win over Mainz, means Bayern are now nine points behind the league leaders. 

Goalkeeper Neuer insists Bayern’s under-performing players will leave no stone unturned in a bid to bridge that gap.

“That should not happen to us,” he said.

“We are bitterly disappointed with ourselves, but we have to live with that. We always question ourselves and always want to do our best. We are our harshest critics.”