Martínez leads Inter comeback over Napoli, Musiala returns for Bayern
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AP:
Lautaro Martínez scored a second goal in injury time to complete Inter Milan’s 3-2 comeback victory over title rival Napoli in Serie A yesterday, while Jamal Musiala returned to action for Bayern Munich in a scoreless draw with Schalke.
Musiala played his first Bundesliga minutes of the season after the Bayern midfielder collapsed in two pre-season matches because of a neurological condition that causes seizures.
In Spain, Athletic Bilbao struck three times in the second half to defeat Diego Simeone’s Atlético Madrid 3-0 in La Liga.
Martínez to the rescue in Italy
Martínez’s brace ensured Inter maintained their strong early title defence, recording a third consecutive victory to remain atop the standings.
Napoli appeared firmly in control after Matteo Politano and Rasmus Højlund scored in the 50th and 53rd minutes.
However, Martínez reduced the deficit three minutes later before Marcus Thuram equalised in the 82nd minute, moments after striking the post.
Martínez then grabbed the winner after Manuel Akanji scrambled a loose ball into his path at the far post, allowing the Inter captain to poke home and spark celebrations at the San Siro.
Napoli, under new coach Massimiliano Allegri, have now suffered back-to-back defeats following their loss to Como.
Inter next travel to Real Madrid for their Champions League opener on Tuesday.
Musiala plays after pre-season collapse
Musiala came on as a second-half substitute in Bayern’s 0-0 draw with Schalke after missing the season opener against Stuttgart.
The point marked Schalke’s first against Bayern since 2017.
Small-town club Elversberg continued a dream start to their first Bundesliga campaign with another upset victory, defeating Borussia Mönchengladbach 4-3 thanks to a stoppage-time winner.
Representing a town of just 13,000 people, Elversberg again shocked one of Germany’s established clubs after beating Bayer Leverkusen last week.
This time, they prevailed without coach Vincent Wagner, who was sent off at half-time, before Maurice Krattenmacher netted the dramatic late winner.
Borussia Dortmund also staged a comeback, defeating Hoffenheim 3-2 after trailing by two goals, with Hoffenheim defender Albian Hajdari’s 86th-minute own goal proving decisive.
Another of Bayern’s title rivals, Leipzig, fell 3-1 at Werder Bremen, where new signing Niclas Füllkrug found the net.
Leverkusen’s new coach, Carles Martinez, secured his first Bundesliga victory with a commanding 4-0 win over Union Berlin.
Bilbao blasts Atlético in Spain
Athletic Bilbao cruised past Atlético Madrid 3-0, courtesy of second-half goals from Nico Williams, Robert Navarro and Oihan Sancet.
It was a second consecutive victory for Athletic under new German coach Edin Terzic.
Elsewhere, Sergio Camello scored twice to lead Rayo Vallecano to a 3-2 victory over Racing Santander.