Saturday, October 27, 2007

Kroos sees Bayern home




Teenager Toni Kroos scored in injury time to give Bayern Munich a 3-2 win over Red Star Belgrade on the opening night of the UEFA Cup group stage.
Kroos, a 17-yr-old midfielder, scored with a freekick after Miroslav Klose had twice equalised for Bayern Munich.
Bayern is one of the favorites to win the UEFA Cup, which it claimed in 1996. But after that trophy, the four-time European Champion played in the European Champions League for ten straight seasons and only dropped into Europe's No 2 competition beacuse it finished fourth in the German league last season.
Red star led in the 16th minute with a low shot from Ognjen Koroman, and Nenad Milijas put the Serbian side ahead 2-1 in the 74th minute with a long -range half volley. Klose equalised in the 84th with a header and also scored in the 20th from a rebound.
Red star defender Milos Bajalica was red-carded in injury time and Kroos scored from the resulting freekick.
Bayern, playing without Martin Demichelis, Franck Ribery, Luca Toni and Daniel van Buyten, had difficulty controlling the game on the slippery and difficult field at the Red Star Stadium.