Bayern Munich defeated Lille thanks to a first half penalty goal by Thomas Müller that probably shouldn’t have been awarded in the first place.
Lille vs. Bayern Munich: Final Score 1-0, Bayern win thanks to a dubious penalty
A Thomas Müller first half penalty was all Bayern needed to defeat Lille 1-0 at the Grand Stade Lille Métropole
Dean Mouhtaropoulos
Bayern went in front in the 20th minute with a big assist from referee Martin Atkinson. Philipp Lahm was every so slightly pushed by Lucas Digne after Lahm had gotten past him outside the penalty area. It took Lahm a good second or two to decide to go down though, as if he couldn't decide whether to shot or try and draw the penalty. In the end, he went down and Atkinson pointed to the spot, much to the chagrin of the Lille players. Thomas Müller stepped up and beat Mickael Landreau with a soft shot to the right left as the keeper dove left.
Lille were a bit better after the goal, but failed to take advantage of the couple of decent chances they were able to generate. Overall though, it was a pretty easy first half for Bayern to navigate.
Lille continued to improve in the second half, getting more possession but failing to do enough with in the final third. They didn't really get going though until the 77th minute when Ryan Mendes replaced Nolan Roux. Mendes immediately created two great chances in the box that were blocked vefore fighting off a defender and sending a looping cross that Manuel Neuer was able to punch away.
Lille will also feel hard done by referee Atkinson who waved away a penalty shout in the second half on essentially the same play that he awarded a penalty to Bayern for in the first half. Of course, the initial contact was just outside the box, so it really only should have been a free kick.
Bayern remain in third place despite the victory, behind Valencia and BATE Borisov on goal differential. Lille are dead last, with their hopes of advancing out of the group quickly slipping away.
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