Gomez hat-trick sparks Bayern win

Bayern Munich cruised to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Kaiserslautern to move ominously to the top of the Bundesliga ahead of the international break.

Mario Gomez bagged a hat-trick in a one-sided encounter at the Betzenberg as Bayern demonstrated how much they have changed since their last visit here a year ago to the day, when they were beaten 2-0.

The Germany international, who scored Bayern's only goal in the 1-0 win over Zurich in midweek, opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 37th minute before adding a second early in the second half.

He finished off the Red Devils in the 69th minute to take the Bayern to the top of the table for the first time since May 2010.

Ivo Ilicevic saw red for Kaiserslautern in the last minute to compound their woes.

Gomez had an early chance to open the scoring when his shot was blocked in the second minute.

It was clear Kaiserslautern were in for a difficult afternoon as Bayern launched attack after attack and the closest the home side came to Bayern's goal was a shot from Christian Tiffert from 25 yards in the 32nd minute.

Bayern's pressure paid off in the 37th minute when Rodnei handled the ball inside the area and the referee pointed to the spot.

Gomez sent Kevin Trapp the wrong way to convert Bayern's dominance into a material advantage.

Another penalty was awarded in the 55th minute when Rodnei again committed a foul inside the area.

Gomez's spot-kick was saved this time, but the rebound was served on a plate for the Bayern striker, who made no mistake from three yards out.

And he made no mistake from slightly further out in the 69th minute, dispatching his shot past Trapp after good work from Thomas Muller, who cut in from the left and pulled the ball back to his compatriot.

Kaiserslautern's frustration was summed up by Ilicevic, who hacked out at Anatoliy Tymoschuk to be sent to the dressing room only seconds before the other 21 players on the field.