BERLIN, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Bayern Munich bounced back from two goals down to defeat struggling Mainz 5-2 and reclaim top spot in the Bundesliga standings on Sunday.
Mainz made a bright start on the road and Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer had to be on guard to defuse Jonathan Burkardt's effort with five minutes played.
Bayern grew into the game as the match progressed and had chances through Corentin Tolisso, who tested Mainz youngster goalkeeper Finn Dahmen twice.
However, it was Mainz who broke the deadlock at the other end as Burkardt shrugged off Jerome Boateng following a long ball and beat Neuer in the 32nd minute.
Bayern responded with furious attacks but Dahmen neutralized Robert Lewandowski's long-range effort with a diving save four minutes later.
Things went from bad to worse for Bayern as Mainz doubled its advantage before the break after Alexander Hack nodded home Daniel Brosinski's free-kick in the 44th minute.
The Nullfunfer continued on the front foot after the restart and should have tripled their advantage but Danny Latza was denied by a combination of Neuer and the post just three minutes into the half.
The record German champion punished Mainz's wastefulness two minutes later, as Joshua Kimmich headed home Lewandowski's flick-on to halve the deficit.
Only six minutes later, Bayern restored parity through Leroy Sane, who had enough space to drill the ball from the edge of the box into the bottom corner.
Mainz remained dangerous and almost grabbed the lead again, but Robin Quaison's shot hit the bar at the hour mark.
Bayern completed its comeback in the 70th minute when Niklas Sule tapped home a flicked-on corner from Thomas Muller to make it 3-2.
The hosts gained momentum and made it four after Lewandowski converted a penalty with 76 minutes gone.
Hansi Flick's men were not done with the scoring and added another goal to their lead as Lewandowski sealed the deal and his brace with seven minutes remaining.
With the win, Bayern Munich reclaimed top spot place in the table, while Mainz stays 17th.
"The first half is of course far from what we wanted to see from our team. But after the restart we showed the will to win and made the most of our chances," Flick said afterwards. Enditem