A late penalty miss from Tim Leibold spared Bayern Munich a humiliating defeat at Nuremberg on Sunday but Niko Kovac's Bundesliga leaders missed the chance to pull away in the title race with a dramatic 1-1 draw at the relegation strugglers.

Bayern had the chance to go four points clear at the top of the table with three games to go after title rivals Borussia Dortmund lost 4-2 to Schalke on Saturday.

Yet there was another twist in the tale on Sunday, as a disciplined Nuremberg side kept Bayern at bay for long periods to earn a well-deserved point and keep Dortmund's title hopes alive.

Leibold had the chance to win the game for the relegation-threatened side late on, but thundered his penalty against the post.

Bayern looked nervous from the offset, and nearly went behind when goalkeeper Sven Ulreich misjudged a backpass from Mats Hummels in the first half.

Matheus Pereira put Nuremberg ahead with a brilliant strike from the edge of the area in the 48th minute.

Gnabry grabbed a scrappy equaliser with 15 minutes to go, scuffing the ball over the goalkeeper Christian Mathenia at the far post.