Harry Kane scored a hat-trick as Bayern Munich beat defending champions VfB Stuttgart 3-0 to win the German Cup on Saturday.
Under the motto “Guess who’s back,” a line taken from the song “Without Me” by US rapper Eminem, Bayern retook their throne with a record-extending 21st Cup title and their first in six years.
Star striker Kane scored the opener in the 55th minute and added second in the 80th before completing his hat-trick from the spot in stoppage time.
Having also won the Bundesliga, Bayern completed a 14th domestic double.
The Harry Kane show
Stuttgart controlled the first 10 minutes of the game and were dangerous near the Bayern box, while the Bavarians struggled to leave their own half.
The German champions started to find spaces and in the 13th, Josip Stanisic found Kane on the edge of the box, but his shot was too weak.
In the 17th, goalkeeper Jonas Urbig, replacing injured Manuel Neuer, had to make a big save to stop Maximilian Mittelstädt’s powerful shot from distance.
Kane tried again in the 22nd but his header from Michael Olise’s cross went over the bar, while Stanisic forced Alexander Nübel’s into a stunning save in the 37th.
The Olise-Kane connection finally worked in the second half as Bayern broke the deadlock in the 55th. The French midfielder made a clinical cross and Kane completed it into the net with a diving header.
Despite having plenty of time to score an equalizer, Stuttgart couldn’t find an answer, and Bayern took advantage of the opponent’s lack of response late in the game.
Kane hit the crossbar but the ball fell back to him, and he didn’t miss it this time, doubling Bayern’s lead in the 80th.
His gala evening was complete in stoppage time: Bayern were awarded a penalty after Angelo Stiller handled the ball in the box and Kane sealed the title.
Bayern struggled in the Cup in the past five seasons, which included three eliminations in the second round.
But Kane has had an incredible season this time around and was crucial to end the negative series: He scored in every Cup match this season, becoming only the third player to ever achieve such milestone.
Protests against DFB
Both set of fans staged protests against the German Football Federation (DFB) in the second half. Among other things, they complained about the high ticket prices and what they view as the federation’s rigid enforcement of rules regarding fan misconduct.
A huge banner featuring the DFB logo crossed out with a red line was paraded around the lower tier of the stadium. Fans also made massive use of pyrotechnics which forced the match to be interrupted twice for a few minutes due to the heavy smoke.