Patient BATE take Bayern by stealth

FC BATE Borisov held on for their first UEFA Champions League group stage home victory as FC Bayern München's dream of a club-record tenth successive win at the start of a season foundered in Group F.

Aleksandr Pavlov struck against the run of play midway through the first half, and while Viktor Goncharenko's side spent plenty of time manning the barricades thereafter, Vitali Rodionov doubled the lead on 78 minutes as the Belarusian team unexpectedly built on their 3-1 win at LOSC Lille on matchday one.

Franck Ribéry pulled one back late on, but as substitute Renan Bressan hit a third for BATE at the death, visiting coach Jupp Heynckes was left to ponder what might have happened had Toni Kroos not missed an open goal after 13 minutes.

Although Edgar Olekhnovich fired into Manuel Neuer's chest early on, Bayern soon began to look like a side that had opened the campaign with nine straight wins in all competitions. Kroos's waking hours tomorrow, however, may be haunted by thoughts of how he failed to put his team ahead. The 22-year-old dispossessed BATE captain Dmitri Likhtarovich on the edge of the box and rounded goalkeeper Andrei Gorbunov before shooting against a post.

Yet, with BATE retreating, a goal appeared to be in the offing. It came, but at the other end. A sudden BATE surge caught Bayern on the hop. Receiving the ball on the right, Denis Polyakov cut back for Aleksandr Volodko, and while his sliced effort from inside the area was less accurate than Kroos's, it fell sweetly for Pavlov to drive low past Neuer.

BATE felt Bayern's fury within seconds, Thomas Müller and Mario Mandžukić both drawing saves from Gorbunov. Obliged to press harder after the break, Bayern left more space for the hosts; Neuer kept out Polyakov, Rodionov scooped one across the face of goal, and Pavlov blazed wide from a great position.

If the Bundesliga leaders still pushed, there was to be no equaliser. Instead Rodionov rifled in the second after a quick exchange of passes with Olekhnovich in the box.

Bayern ripped into BATE in the closing stages. Gorbunov clawed one Ribéry attempt off the line, then watched another deflect onto the crossbar, but could do nothing to prevent the France winger stealing in to pull one back in added time. BATE's defence creaked, yet they were relieved as Dmitri Mozolevski set up fellow replacement Bressan to blast in their third.