Bayern lead in the Bundesliga after draw against Nurnberg

Holders Bayern Munich were held to a 1-1 draw at relegation-threatened Nuremberg on Sunday as the title race in the Bundesliga is rendered wide open with three games remaining.

It was Serge Gnabry who rescued a point for the Bavarians with a volley 15 minutes from time after Nurnberg took a shock lead after the interval through a Matheus Pereira goal. Bayern were lucky as the opposition incidentally missed a penalty too.

The draw leaves Bayern on top of the pile with 71 points after Borussia Dortmund (on 69 points) lost a golden opportunity to get back to the lead after being stunned 4-2 by Schalke in the Ruhr derby.

Third-placed RB Leipzig, who have sealed a Champions League spot in the upcoming season, are on 64 points.

Bayern, after being aware of Dortmund's defeat, went into the match, knowing that a win at Nuremberg could likely see them win the title by next week as the lead could potentially have been four.

The side from Munich was on the offensive as everyone imagined them to be, and they hit the post through Austrian left-back David Alaba in the first half.

But it was Nurnberg who drew first blood three minutes after the resumption of the second half with Pereira slotting home the rebound after Bayern keeper Sven Ulreich had blocked a shot.

The champions were distraught and it visibly took them some time to recover from the unexpected setback before they could get hold of the initiative again.

Colombian James Rodriguez' free kick was tipped onto the bar by the Nurnberg goalkeeper Christian Mathenia, and soon Bayern got back into the game after formal Arsenal player and substitute Gnabry nonchalantly chipped a volley over the keeper towards the far post in the 74th minute.

Nuremberg had the chance to grab the game by the scruff of the neck after being awarded with a penalty in the 89th minute. But it was not to be, as Tim Leibold hit the woodwork.

"We had a tough German Cup game in midweek and maybe we were not that fresh," Bayern coach Niko Kovac told reporters about their 3-2 semifinal win over Werder Bremen on Wednesday. 

"Nuremberg did it well and fought for every ball. They made our life difficult from the first to the last minute. It is frustrating because we could have gone four points clear. Now we must put this behind us as quickly as possible and win all three remaining games."