Olise sends Bayern through in Club World Cup
Michael Olise's late winner earned a 2-1 win over Boca Juniors and sent Bayern Munich through to the FIFA Club World Cup knockout stages with a match to spare.
The France international netted the decisive goal six minutes from time in the Group C clash, after Miguel Merentiel cancelled out Harry Kane's earlier effort at Hard Rock Stadium.
Bayern broke the deadlock after 18 minutes in Miami, as Kane prodded home after Boca failed to deal with Konrad Laimer's cross.
Kevin Zenon tested Manuel Neuer with two fierce drives as Miguel Angel Russo's side sought a response.
However, Neuer was helpless when Boca equalised midway through the second half; Merentiel getting in behind Jonathan Tah and skipping away from Josip Stanisic, before sweeping into the roof of the net.
Bayern enjoyed a 10-0 rout of Auckland City in its Group C opener, but had to wait until the 84th minute to snatch all three points here, with Kane teeing up Olise to slot beyond Boca goalkeeper Agustin Marchesin and into the bottom corner.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said it would have been easy for his team to allow the nerves to kick in, but instead it kept its composure.
"We had to work a lot today but we got the job done – we're in the last 16 and I’m really pleased about that," he said.
"You saw how tough it is for European teams to play against South American sides. I think we did it really well.
"We controlled the emotions in the game. Yes, we conceded a goal but we stayed calm. And the way we saw the game out was very mature. Overall it was a solid performance."
Bayern's win over Boca ended a run of nine straight matches unbeaten for South American teams to begin the FIFA Club World Cup, with Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea having already fallen foul of Botafogo and Flamengo respectively.
Kane, who opened his account for the tournament after failing to find the net in Bayern's 10-0 rout of Auckland City, feels his team's progression to the next round is just reward for how seriously it is taking this competition.
"It was a big performance from the guys," Kane said. "We knew it wasn’t going to be easy with the hot weather. The first half was really good, we should have been two or three up. It was tougher in the second, they put us under a bit of pressure and got the momentum, but once they scored we shifted it back in our direction.
"It was great to score the goal and seal qualification. It's a massive tournament, we’re playing against the best teams in the world. Our attitude is always that we need to produce our highest level. So far it's going well in this competition."
Bayern is the second side through to the Round of 16 as it joined Flamengo, which has also collected six points from six in Group D.
Bayern rounds off its Group C campaign on Wednesday (AEST) against Benfica, which beat Auckland 6-0 in its second match of the competition at Bank of America Stadium.
