Bayern Munich can celebrate after securing a second-place finish in this year’s Champions League league phase with a 2-1 win over PSV Eindhoven. After the win, striker Harry Kane reflected on what has been a fantastic European campaign for the German record champions.
“Seven wins out of eight just shows the type of team we are,” Kane said in his post-match remarks, as captured by @iMiaSanMia. “I felt like we probably had the toughest group out of everyone as well. A lot of really difficult games:
away to PSG, away to Arsenal, Chelsea at home, away here. And we had to do it the hard way. So credit to everyone involved, the way we’ve handled each game.”
Handling is the right way to put it. The Champions League has expanded and with it the number of European games to play each season: from six group stage matches to eight in the league phase. On top of that, there is the first round of the knockouts for teams outside of the Top Eight.
It’s a lot to juggle and a challenge for any team, even one as dominant as Bayern. Timing of injuries, a need to recover or maintain form…there are many factors for head coach Vincent Kompany to take into consideration when it comes time to set the lineups.
This time, with Bayern already qualified, he changed it up — but not enough to lose the game. In fact, it’s hard to see how this could have turned out any more ideally. The youngsters (Lennart Karl and Tom Bischof) grew into their roles, Jonas Urbig got a key match in as the starting goalkeeper, and injury returnees Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies each got to continue working on their recoveries. Nicolas Jackson put in a solid shift early on, and then gave way for a well-rested Harry Kane to smash in a fantastic goal.
Kane, and Bayern, have every right to be brimming with confidence. And now? They’ll get a long break from the UCL, time to focus on recovery and the domestic competitions. So far, so good.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
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