Following the important victory in Wolfsburg on Saturday, the Munich Frauen returned to the Campus to face Juventus in the UWCL. Following the humiliating loss in Barcelona and the tough Champions League fixures to come, there was talk about this being a must-win.
Juventus have only played three competitive matches so far this season, but they managed to win against Benfica in the UWCL last time out. They currently sit eighth in Serie A, with just one point from a possible six. Bayern Frauen did the double
over Juventus last season, winning home (4-0) and away (0-2) in the group stage.
Head Coach José Barcala made just the one change to the Starting XI from the clash against Wolfsburg, namely Mala Grohs replacing Ena Mahmutovic in net — a forced change due to an ankle injury keeping the latter out of the German national team for the international break.
The Bayern XI was as follows:
Mala Grohs (GK) – Giulia Gwinn, Glódis Perla Viggósdóttir, Stine Ballisager, Franziska Kett – Georgia Stanway, Arianna Caruso – Linda Dallmann, Momoko Tanikawa, Pernille Harder, Klara Bühl
The Match
Bayern looked to use the momentum from the result on the weekend early on, with Bühl in particular causing Juventus many problems. In the ninth minute, she beat her marker and fired a low cross into the six-yard box, but Harder could only redirect the effort wide. That combination was looking deadly though, and would bear fruit quickly! Bühl tried her luck again in the 11th minute, this time dinking a cross toward the near post where Harder was their again, this time heading home from close range, 1-0!
Bayern had a lot of momentum, and if not for the crossbar, they would have doubled the advantage. Again, Bühl was the driving force: she was able to pick out Tanikawa, but the latter’s header crashed off the crossbar.
Juventus were aiming to play on the break, as was shown when they played a long ball to club legend Barbara Bonansea in the 17th minute. She controlled the ball and cut inside, and was tackled by Stanway. The English midfielder seemed to win the ball, but the referee blew for a freekick on the edge of the box. From that freekick, young midfielder Eva Schatzer curled the ball into the top corner with her left boot, 1-1. Grohs got hands to it, but not enough to push it out of danger.
Bayern responded well, and in the 21st minute should have regained their lead. On the right, Caruso played the ball into the path of an overlapping Gwinn, who crossed it from the byline into the centre of the box. Unfortunately, both Bühl and Tanikawa ran to head the ball, with the former running away from goal being the one who got the touch. If she had got the call from Tanikawa who was running towards goal, it would have been difficult to stop.
Bühl attempted to make amends in the 24th minute, driving from the left into the centre and dribbling past a few defenders, before picking out Harder on the edge of the box. Her strike was powerful, but flashed wide of the post.
Bayern were dominant in possession and had some nice moments but the final action was just not coming off, as displayed just moments before half time. Stanway picked up the ball on the edge of the box and released a trademark shot from distance. It flew past Peyraud Magnin in goal and but ultimately crashed off of the crossbar.
As play resumed after the break, Bayern resumed being the dominant team. Juventus’ aim was to deal with the pressure from Bayern’s attackers and catch them out on the break. It was up to Bayern to take some of the chances they failed to take in the first half.
However, Bayern were struggling to create chances with any regularity. The main chance of note came in the 52nd minute, when Gwinn was able to cross to the back post from the byline. Bühl was the intended target and struck it from a tight angle into the side netting.
Seemingly not happy with what he saw, Barcala made his first change in the 58th minute, replacing Tanikawa with Schüller.
Moments after the substitution, Caruso received a kick to her shoulder following a collision with striker Michela Cambiaghi. The Italian midfielder attempted to play on, but had to be replaced in the 65th minute by Lena Oberdorf. Barcala also switched Dallmann with Alara Şehitler in the same substitution window.
In the final stages, the game was reminiscent of the draw at home to Jena, with crosses galore with that served no real purpose. Bayern had a lot of possession deep in the Juventus half, but the opposition defended well and limited Bayern to half-chances at best.
In the 94th minute, though, Bayern would get their lifeline. Gwinn crossed it from the right touchline toward the centre of box. Harder rose highest, and headed it behind the defensive line into the path of Schüller. She acrobatically stuck a leg out and poked it past an onrushing Peyraud Magnin, and the ball continued bouncing toward the goal. After around two minutes of VAR-infused confusion, Bayern were given the goal, 2-1!
Deep into added time, Juventus almost got the equaliser as they threw women forward. From a corner, an initial header was palmed away by Grohs, and the rebound was struck at Grohs again, who reacted with a great save. Bayern cleared their lines, and the referee blew the final whistle.
Conclusions
This wasn’t the ‘reaction’ that many fans would have expected following the result in Barcelona, but it was a vital win. The win may have come about in controversial circumstances, but for Barcala, the fact that it came about at all will provide relief. Bayern have difficult UWCL games to come, with Arsenal, PSG, Atletico de Madrid and Vålerenga, and so desperately wanted to get some points on the board and rise up from the foot of the table.
The performance on display in the second half was disappointing: it feels like this Bayern side struggle for ideas when they desperately need a goal, ending up crossing it or relying on a piece of individual brilliance. When neither come off, teams that are set up to defend well like Jena in the home draw or Juventus tonight look comfortable and can cause Bayern problems on the counter. Something for Barcala and his team to look at over the upcoming international break.
Bayern’s final match before the aforementioned international break is hosting Köln this Sunday.