CL table irritates Kane
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Harry Kane (31) was in the best mood for “a big week”. During training in the warming Munich November sun, the goalgetter and his colleagues from FC Bayern got the greed for the tests in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain, in the Bundesliga against home team Borussia Dortmund and in the DFB Cup against Bayer 04 Leverkusen. “It’s a great opportunity to show our fans something,” said coach Vincent Kompany full of anticipation.
Sports director Max Eberl spoke of “highlight games”. And captain Manuel Neuer (38) even indulged in an attempt at intimidation after six clean sheets in a row with a big Mia-san-mia chest: “We have already shown a lot this season. And we like to play against the best. Paris, Dortmund and Leverkusen are top-class opponents. But every team also knows how strong we are at the moment. I don’t think any of the three teams are looking forward to meeting us now.”
But how strong are Bayern really? That is the question to which coach Kompany and his star ensemble around Kane have to answer within eight days – in all three competitions. Are treble dreams realistic in the Belgian’s debut year? Or will a first title option in the DFB Cup already be gone in a week?
Crazy table: FC Bayern in 17th place, Paris in 25th place
It starts on Tuesday (9 p.m./Amazon Prime) in the premier class. And that in the Allianz Arena against a still well-known PSG team, which for Kompany is still “one of the top ten clubs” even without the star striker Kylian Mbappé (25), who moved to Real Madrid – that is true in terms of squad value both teams too. “I wouldn’t expect this game to be boring,” he said. Because the table situation condemns both teams to success.
At the halfway point of the league phase, coach Luis Enrique’s PSG team is in 25th place with four points. That would ultimately mean early elimination. But Bayern (6 points) also need their third (home) win in their fifth game in order to climb further up from 17th place after their false start. “We’re not used to being this far down, but this is a new format,” Kane said. “We know that we have to win every game to get into the top 8 – and so do PSG. That’s why it’s going to be a big evening.”
Kompany: FC Bayern has “built up self-confidence”
Kompany is optimistic before the week of truth: “We have built up self-confidence for these games.” And after the eye-opening 1:4 at FC Barcelona five weeks ago, he has made some stability adjustments to reduce the risks and side effects of his previously too daring approach Hurray style reduced.
“We stayed calm after Barcelona, worked and learned from those moments,” Kompany noted. The last line of defense is no longer placed so extremely high. And the pressing actions appear more controlled and better protected. The central defenders Dayot Upamecano (26) and Min-jae Kim (28) as well as Neuer, who has not had to get a ball out of his goal in 574 minutes of play, particularly benefit from this. In the last five competitive games, no team from the top 5 leagues has a better record than Bayern (see international form table). Neuer expressly praises “defending as a group” and everyone’s desire to protect their own goal.
Stability instead of spectacular football at FC Bayern
In retrospect, DFB captain Joshua Kimmich (29) is also “very happy” that no fundamental doubts about Kompany’s style arose internally after Barcelona. “We were confident in the way we played,” he said. Now you shouldn’t let up under any circumstances.
Eberl speaks of “stability that we have achieved”. After the 3-0 win against Augsburg, the sports director reacted with amusement, but also shook his head at reservations that Bayern’s more controlled style of play offered less glamor and spectacle: “A few weeks ago we had to explain to ourselves why we play spectacular football and don’t defend better .” Even against PSG, BVB and Bayer, it’s all about results.
