Franck Ribery double lifts Bayern Munich over Frankfurt

Eintracht Frankfurt 0-3 Bayern Munich
(Ribery 35', 79', Rafinha 89')
Commerzbank Arena, Frankfurt

Franck Ribery was the star of the show as Bayern Munich defeated Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

The Frenchman found the back of the net in each half, giving him four goals in his last four league games. Rafinha added a third before the final whistle to finish off the dominant Bayern performance.

Ribery got the start on Saturday in large part due to the injury of Serge Gnabry, who picked up a knock in Bayern's 1-0 victory over Leipzig on Tuesday. But the veteran forward rose to the challenge, using his skill on the ball to cause problems for the Frankfurt defense.

The 35-year-old was set up perfectly for his first goal, with Thomas Müller finding Robert Lewandowski in the box from the right before the Polish striker slid him the ball for an easy tap-in. Ribery deserved more credit for his second, combining with Joshua Kimmich on a quick one-two before slotting a shot past the dive of Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp.

Ribery was only a gleeful spectator for Bayern's third as Rafinha chipped a fantastic lob over Trapp's head and over the goal line.

The victory allowed Bayern to leapfrog Borussia Mönchengladbach, who lost 2-1 to Borussia Dortmund on Friday, into second place in the Bundesliga table. They enter the league's midseason break six points behind the league leaders.

As it happened...

90' Final! Bayern Munich defeat Eintracht Frankfurt in convincing fashion to move up to second place in the Bundesliga.

90+1' Three minutes added onto the second half

90' Bayern substitutions: Kingsley Coman, Meritan Shabani and Sandro Wagner replace Franck Ribery, Thomas Müller and Robert Lewandowski. Niko Kovac used all three of his substitutions in one go!

89' GOAL! Rafinha fires a spectacular lob over Kevin Trapp to pad Bayern's lead. Eintracht Frankfurt 0, Bayern Munich 3

82' Rafinha is escorted off the pitch by Bayern's medical staff after slipping awkwardly on the pitch. 

79' GOAL! Franck Ribery scores his second of the game, combining with Joshua Kimmich before slotting the ball past Kevin Trapp. Eintracht Frankfurt 0, Bayern Munich 2

77' Nicolai Müller puts in a cross from the right, but Sebastien Haller could not direct his header on target. 

70' Sebastien Haller makes a late challenge on Rafinha, but manages to avoid a booking from Manuel Gräfe.

70' Frankfurt substitution Nicolai Müller replaces Gelson Fernandes, Adi Hütter's second substitution.

65' Whistles echo through Commerzbank Arena after Franck Ribery goes to ground following a Gelson Fernandes challenge.

58' Danny Da Costa puts in a cross from the right, but the service is a bit too high for Luka Jovic to connect with in the penalty area.

56' Jetro Willems goes to ground after a collision with Thiago. Manuel Gräfe allows play to continue, much to the dismay of the whistling Frankfurt fans.

54' Simon Falette gets a lecture from Manuel Gräfe after a hard foul on Robert Lewandowski near the midway line. 

52' An unmarked Jetro Willems brings down a long pass, but his weak effort drifts well wide of the target.

50' Jonathan De Guzman puts a teasing cross into the penalty area, but Manuel Neuer comes off his line to snatch it out of the air.

46' Kickoff! The second half is underway in Frankfurt.

Some first half stats: 

• Both sides have six shots in the game, though five of Bayern's attempts have been on target as opposed to only two for Frankfurt.
• Bayern held 70 percent of the possession in the first half. They passed with greater success too  completing 84 percent of their passes as opposed to Frankfurt's success rate of 71 percent.
• According to WhoScored.com, Frankfurt won 11 aerial duels and nine tackles in the first half, far better figures than Bayern — six aerial duels, four tackles. Bayern were also dispossessed eight times. 

45' Halftime

45+3' Frankfurt struggling to break forward at the moment. A long pass towards Luka Jovic from Danny Da Costa is easily intercepted by Niklas Süle. 

45+1' Three minutes added on to the first half.

44' Off the crossbar! Thomas Müller connects with a Robert Lewandowski cross and hits the woodwork. It is the 10th time Bayern have hit the frame of the goal this season.

42' Frankfurt substitution: Jonathan De Guzman replaces Mijat Gacinovic, Adi Hütter's first substitution. Gacinovic walks off the pitch under his own power surrounded by Frankfurt's training staff. 

41' Mijat Gacinovic pulls up and holds his right hamstring as he collapses to the turf. Members of Frankfurt's training staff are signaling to the sideline that he needs to be substituted. 

37' Gelson Fernandez sees yellow after fouling Franck Ribery, his fourth booking of the season. Ribery is forced to leave the pitch for about a minute to receive medical attention. 

35' GOAL! Franck Ribery puts Bayern Munich ahead after Lewandowski feeds him in the penalty area. The Frenchman has now scored in three of Bayern's last four games. Eintracht Frankfurt 0, Bayern Munich 1

29' Javi Martinez heads a shot over the crossbar on the ensuing corner, but Manuel Gräfe blows for an offensive foul. 

28' Gelson Fernandes slides in late on Joshua Kimmich, but referee Manuel Gräfe decides not to give a yellow card. Danny Da Costa deflects Kimmich's free kick out for a corner.

25' Franck Ribery plays a cross in from the right towards Robert Lewandowski, but Mijat Gacinovic clears it away for a corner. NIklas Süle heads the ensuing corner out of play, though he thought the ball deflected off of Evan N'Dicka

23' Frankfurt's tough defensive approach is showing in the first half. According to football statistics website WhoScored.com, the Eagles have won six aerial duels and six tackles and have dispossessed Bayern six times. 

18' In just two passes, Frankfurt moves the ball from the left flank to the right to set up Mijat Gacinovic, but the Serbian midfielder cannot put his effort on target.

16' It is a very end-to-end game so far! There have been six shots combined in the first 15 minutes, four of which were on target. Bayern Munich has the possession advantage with 65 percent.

13' Javi Martinez heads the ensuing corner from Joshua Kimmich on target, which Kevin Trapp bats out for another corner. Kimmich's next corner is hurriedly cleared away.

12' Sebastien Haller trips a Bayern player, which draws a scolding from referee Manuel Gräfe. David Alaba's ensuing free kick is tipped over the bar by Kevin Trapp for a corner.

11' Luka Jovic dribbles around a couple of Bayern defenders and combines with Sebastian Haller before firing a shot just wide of the right post. 

8' A fantastic opportunity for Danny Da Costa! Filip Kostic puts in a cross from the left. Luka Jovic leaves the pass for Mijat Gacinovic, who picks out Da Costa on the right. Da Costa fires from just outside the six-yard box, but Manuel Neuer saves.

6' Evan N'Dicka bumps heads with Thomas Müller while the two jump in the air for the ball. Müller protests for a foul, but referee Manuel Gräfe doesn't oblige.

4' Sebastien Haller had a terrific chance to give the home side an early lead, but Manuel Neuer snatched up the ball before chucking the ball forward in the direction of Franck Ribery.

1' Kickoff! The game is underway in Frankfurt.

— Bayern Munich haven't lost any of their last 14 meetings with Eintracht Frankfurt. However, the Eagles have performed better at home against the Bavarians recently, snatching at least a point in two of their last three matchups. 

— While speaking with Sky Sports in Germany, Niko Kovac said he watched Frankfurt's German Cup victory over Bayern three times: once in the stadium and two times thereafter.

— Javi Martinez is making his first start for Bayern Munich since the club's 3-3 draw with Fortuna Düsseldorf on November 24. He has fallen somewhat out of favor with Niko Kovac, with the Bayern coach electing to start the likes of Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka over the Spaniard.

— Here are the lineups for this evening's game...

— In a press conference on Friday, Niko Kovac, who coached Frankfurt from 

— This is the second rematch of last season's German Cup final. Frankfurt, then led by current Bayern Munich Niko Kovac, shocked last season's Bundesliga champions in a 3-1 victory, denying the Bavarians a domestic double. It was the first trophy the Eagles had won in 30 years.

In their first rematch in the DFL Supercup in August, Bayern trounced the Eagles 5-0. Robert Lewandowski scored a hat trick in less than an hour of play. Kingsley Coman and Thiago Alcantara tacked on two more before the final whistle.

— Despite their struggles this season, Bayern Munich could enter the winter break six points behind Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga title race. The defending league champions enter Saturday evening's game on a four-game winning streak, their latest victory coming against RB Leipzig on Wednesday. But Bayern are a tad shorthanded at the moment; Serge Gnabry picked up an injury in the side's win over Leipzig, adding to an injury list that includes Arjen Robben, James Rodriguez and Corentin Tolisso.