Bayern Munich sneak past Freiburg to stay top of Bundesliga table

The Netherlands international fired into the top corner from 25 yards shortly after the break to hand Thomas Tuchel his second victory in his first two league games and maintain their lead over second-place Borussia Dortmund.

Similar to their cup quarterfinal defeat against Freiburg on Tuesday, Bayern struggled to finish off a resolute and defensively sound Freiburg side, which was in stark contrast to their demolition of Dortmund in the previous week's "Klassiker."

De Ligt's powerful and speculative shot from long range, deflected into the top left corner, was the deciding factor, but Freiburg had opportunities to equalize.

Ritsu Doan hit the post just before the break, and only an excellent performance from goalkeeper Yann Sommer, who replaced the injured Manuel Neuer, preserved Bayern's lead.

Union Berlin had the chance to unseat Dortmund as the main challengers to Bayern if they could get the better of Edin Terzic's side at Signal Iduna Park, but fell to a 2-1 defeat thanks to a winning goal from 18-year-old substitute Youssoufa Moukoko.

Earlier, Kevin Behrens levelled for the Bundesliga's surprise package as they looked to keep their bid for a first-ever Champions League place on track, after Donyell Malen had given the home side the lead.

Bayer Leverkusen beat Frankfurt 3-1 to leapfrog the Europa League holders into the European places, whilst Mainz and Werder Bremen drew 2-2. Augsburg went down 3-1 at home to Koln and Leipzig were 1-0 winners against Hertha Berlin.