Manuel Neuer knows he made a mess of things against FC Augsburg, and the Bayern Munich captain is not trying to hide from it.
Bayern Munich was stunned just 8.4 seconds into Saturday’s 2-2 draw when Neuer’s attempted clearance struck Robin Fellhauer, allowing the Augsburg midfielder to score into an empty net. The goal set a new Bundesliga record for the fastest goal in league history, giving Neuer an unwanted place in the record books.
Reflecting on the incident, the veteran goalkeeper explained how
Augsburg’s pressing forced him into a difficult situation, but admitted that his decision-making ultimately let him down.
“It was a silly mistake by me. I had to put the ball on my left because I was being pressed from the right by two players. Then I tried to find a solution, but I simply should have made a different decision,” Neuer said (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “After the goal, I first had to collect myself, take a deep breath and shake it off. Of course, there was still plenty of hope because it was only the first minute. We still had a chance to turn the game around.
“We had chances, but unfortunately, we failed to take them. We were also a bit unlucky with some marginal offside decisions. It’s a game unlike anything most of us have experienced before. It was quite bizarre to score so many goals only for them to be ruled out.”
Neuer deserves credit for owning his mistake, but his frustration with Bayern Munich’s finishing is understandable. The record-breaking opener put the visitors on the back foot, yet they still had opportunities to take all three points.
Bayern Munich cannot change what happened in the opening seconds, but the team can learn from it. Neuer needs to move on from his blunder, and the attackers must make sure their missed chances do not become the bigger story of another disappointing result.
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