Manuel Neuer became the oldest player to appear for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, but the veteran goalkeeper was forced off injured before half-time in his side’s win over Mainz.
Bayern stayed top on goal difference after Borussia Dortmund also won on Matchday 9, while RB Leipzig took advantage of their meeting with Augsburg to climb provisionally to third.
Neuer started the match at 40 years and 225 days old, surpassing former Bayern goalkeeper Bernd Dreher, who was 40 years and 198 days old when he made his final Bundesliga appearance for the club, also against Mainz, in May 2007.
Neuer’s night ended before the break after he received treatment on his right foot following a set piece from which Lee Jae-sung scored an offside goal, with Jonas Urbig replacing the Bayern captain in the 45th minute.
It was Neuer’s 550th Bundesliga appearance and his 394th for Bayern since joining from Schalke in 2011, coming just days after he became the German player with the most Champions League appearances by making his 164th against Atlético Madrid.
Joshua Kimmich opened the scoring in the 14th minute and Lennart Karl added a second in the 57th as Bayern beat Mainz 2–0 to claim their sixth league win of the season.
At Signal Iduna Park, Felix Nmecha scored twice as Borussia Dortmund beat Elversberg 2–1 to move level with Bayern on 21 points, with the reigning champions holding on to top spot on goal difference.
Leipzig came from behind after conceding in the first minute to beat Augsburg 5–1 and move up to 18 points, provisionally overtaking Freiburg, who have 16 and face Union Berlin on Sunday.
