Staff Reporter.
@GettyImages.
Harry Kane scored his 22nd Bundesliga goal of the season as Bayern Munich beat Hoffenheim 3-0 on an emotional night of tributes paid to Germany great Franz Beckenbauer at Allianz Arena.
Bayern wore shirts with ‘danke Franz’ written across the front in their first game since former player and manager Beckenbauer’s death aged 78 on Sunday.
Jamal Musiala scored either side of half-time before England captain Kane lashed in a late third for the hosts.
“It was a great game. We had possession a lot and did good counter-pressing,” Musiala said. “We could have created more chances, we are all hungry. The most important thing is that we kept a clean sheet and got the three points.”
“We are really good friends, we like to play together and we both are very strong with the ball. It’s really fun to play with Leroy,” he said.
The Bavarians are in second place in the standings on 41 points, one behind leaders Bayer Leverkusen, in action at Augsburg on Saturday.
Bayern struggled for rhythm throughout following an emotionally charged build-up to the game, with numerous tributes to Beckenbauer, who made 582 appearances for the club and later went on to manage them.
The home team warmed up wearing the former World Cup winner’s iconic number five shirt and walked out to ‘Gute Freunde’, a song recorded by Beckenbauer in the 1960s, before kick-off.
Hours after his funeral in Munich, the stadium was illuminated with the words ‘Thank You Franz’ as dozens of former Bayern players gathered in the stands to pay tribute to ‘der Kaiser’ along with 75,000 fans.
It had been a quiet night for ex-Tottenham forward Kane prior to his late fierce strike into the top corner, heading wide when well placed and then blazing over the bar after Hoffenheim had been reduced to 10 men following Grischa Promel’s sending off for two bookings.
Kane’s former Spurs team-mate Eric Dier, who also signed for the German giants on Thursday, was not included in their squad.