FC Bayern’s triple dream has shattered. Paris is in the final.
Harry Kane stroked his hair in bitter disappointment, the superstar’s last-minute goal wasn’t enough: the dream of the triple and the handle pot was over! FC Bayern failed in a thrilling semi-final of the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain. Coach Vincent Kompany’s team only managed a 1-1 (0-1) draw in the second giant duel with PSG after a great fight and were unable to turn around the memorable 4-5 in the historic first leg.
“We weren’t killers on offense today. This key moment in the game was simply missing. We were there, but it wasn’t clear enough in the PSG box at the front,” said captain Manuel Neuer on “DAZN”: “Now the disappointment predominates.”
While Paris, led by world footballer Ousmane Dembélé, can dream of successfully defending their title against FC Arsenal in Budapest on May 30th, the only thing left for Bayern is the double as a “consolation prize” for a nevertheless remarkable season. For Munich, who will be in the cup final against Stuttgart on May 23rd, it was their eighth exit from the Champions League in their 14th participation in the semi-finals.
Cold shower for FC Bayern
Dembélé gave PSG the lead after just 140 seconds and dampened the record champions’ great hopes early on.
The Munich 101-goal storm with Kane, Michael Olise and Luis Díaz tried hard, but Kane (90+4) only managed to equalize late. Otherwise, Bayern lacked the shine and impact of the past few weeks in many moments. The Munich stars snuck towards their fans with their heads hanging, while the Parisians celebrated where they had won the title last year.
The tension was huge, the arena was shaking even before kick-off. Sports director Max Eberl raved about the “extraordinary energy”. “Shoot us into the final,” said a huge red and white banner above the atmospheric south curve.
In general, there was great confidence among Bayern. “The momentum,” said even club patron Uli Hoeneß with all his experience, lies “with FC Bayern, not with Paris.” CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen emphasized that “we have to inspire the football world once again against this immensely strong Paris.”
Fuss about handball
Kompany approached the project with a change in the starting eleven compared to the appearance in the Prinzenpark: He fielded Konrad Laimer as full-back instead of Alphonso Davies.
After the goal spectacle in Paris and the recent 16 goals conceded in six games, Bayern did not plan to change their offensive focus. But PSG took advantage of an initial gap in the defense very early on. After a precise pass from whirlwind Chwitscha Kwarazchelia, which was skilfully cleared on the left by Fábian, Dembélé hammered the ball into the net from close range, making it unstoppable for Manuel Neuer.
After the early shock, the Munich team needed a certain amount of time to get going. Things became dangerous for the first time after 14 minutes. But Olise was blocked by Nuno Mendes at the last moment after a cross from Díaz. Bayern now tried to control the game. However, this was only partially successful against the Parisians who were confident on the ball. PSG always managed to break away. Bayern still had two very good shot chances through Díaz (22nd) and Olise (27th).
There was a lot of excitement when Vitinha shot the ball clearly into the hands of his colleague Joao Neves in his own penalty area during a break (31′) and the whistle was missed. Hoeneß raged in the stands, but referee Joao Pinheiro’s decision was in accordance with the rules. Almost in return, Neuer quickly cleared against Neves, the otherwise unremarkable Jamal Musiala was denied by goalkeeper Matwei Safonow shortly before the break in an eventful but disjointed first half.
After the change, Bayern increased the tempo, but still didn’t really get any traction. Rather, the danger of running into a counterattack by the fast French increased. Désiré Doué and Kwarazchelia tested Neuer, who kept his team in the game with his reflexes. The Munich team now tried with force, the pressure increased. Diaz and Olise failed because of Safonow (69th/70th).
