Munich, Germany (SportsNetwork.com) - Bayern Munich piled more misery on Schalke on Saturday as Arjen Robben netted a hat trick in a 5-1 Bayern victory over Schalke at the Allianz Arena.
After losing 6-1 at home to Real Madrid in the Champions League in midweek, Schalke couldn't have asked for a worse assignment on Saturday, and the visitors paid a heavy price.
Bayern took a four-goal lead inside of 30 minutes and coasted home from there, with Schalke's lone tally coming on a Rafinha own goal in the second half.
David Alaba had Bayern in front in the first three minutes with a deflected effort that looped over the head over goalkeeper Ralf Fahrmann.
Robben made it 2-0 in the 15th when he cut inside from the right wing and lashed a shot past the goalkeeper, while Mario Mandzukic was next as he scored from close range, making it 3-0.
The second goal for Robben came in the 28th minute when he once again made his way toward the middle of the field from the right wing and beat Fahrmann with a left-footed effort.
Rafinha handed his former team its lone goal of the game when he turned a corner kick into his own net midway through the second half.
However, Mandzukic was brought down inside the penalty area by Schalke's Kyriakos Papadopoulos, earning the defender a red card and allowing Robben to cap his day with a third goal.
Bayern moves 20 points clear at the top of the league with the victory, while Schalke could drop out of the top four if Wolfsburg wins at Hoffenheim on Sunday.
Borussia Dortmund jumped into second place after a 3-0 win over Nurnberg behind goals from Mats Hummels, Robert Lewandowski and Henrik Mkhitaryan, while Bayer Leverkusen slipped to third after losing 1-0 to Mainz through a first-half goal from Maxim Choupo-Moting.
Augsburg earned a point against Hannover in a 1-1 draw after a second-half equalizer from Ragnar Klavan, Werder Bremen moved six points clear of the bottom three after a 1-0 win against Hamburg in an important relegation clash and last-place Braunschweig finished in a 1-1 draw with Monchengladbach after an own goal from goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen handed the bottom dwellers an equalizer.
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