Bayern too strong for Villarreal

An early Toni Kroos strike set Bayern Munich up for a convincing 2-0 win over Villarreal on Wednesday as they look to assert themselves in the Champions League group of death.With Manchester City and Napoli also in Group A they are all set to be tough matches and no side can afford to drop points.Bayern got off to the perfect start with Kroos firing home after six minutes and they never looked back in a commanding performance from the Germans.They had a series of chances in the second half to finish off Villarreal before substitute Rafinha secured the win with 15 minutes left.Bayern arrived at El Madrigal after an excellent start to the season that included a 7-0 defeat of Freiburg at the weekend. Mario Gomez had scored seven goals in his last two matches and Franck Ribery was back to his best on the wing as the team more than coped with the loss of the injured Arjen Robben.However, the main difference with this Bayern side is in defence where they are far more solid after important summer reinforcements including keeper Manuel Neuer and Jerome Boateng.Despite the task ahead, Villarreal knew how important it was to start the group stage well with difficult games ahead but they went behind early on.Missing his main creative player Borja Valero through suspension, coach Juan Carlos Garrido fielded a solid midfield including the veteran Marcos Senna, and aimed to attack using the pace of Nilmar Honorato and Giuseppe Rossi.However his plan to be defensively strong did not last more than a few minutes as Bayerns potent attack put them ahead. Ribery found Kroos, who was given far too much space in the heart of the Villarreal penalty area, and he finished clinically.The home side tried to respond and their forwards certainly looked like they had the beating of Bayern defenders Holger Badstuber and Daniel Van Buyton, but they saw little of the ball as the Germans enjoyed the majority of the possession in midfield.Bastian Schweinsteiger had a powerful shot from distance which was blocked by keeper David Lopez, while Ribery was the main threat and making it a tough evening for full back Mario Gaspar.