I haven’t lived in Munich for long, but I am already a big FC Bayern fan. There simply is no way around it. I live 200 m from their headquarters. I see them drive in and out of training as I walk my kids to the kindergarten. So obviously I watched the game (on TV; tickets were going for €599…). Obvioulsy I believed in their abilities. What I didn’t expect, however, was to see the end of an era heralded in the Allianz Arena last night, with Europe’s premium football club FC Barcelona shattered by an impressive FC Bayern four nil win.
Although Barça’s ball possession was superior to the Bavarians, their defence was not.
A handball by Barcelona defender Gerard Piqué could have awarded the Germans a penalty kick, but it went unnoticed by Hungarian referee Kassai.
Bayern took the lead in the 25th minute with a header by Thomas Müller after Dante’s pass.
For the remainder of the first half, the scoreboard remained unchanged at 1:0. Early in the second half, Bayern forward Mario Gomez tapped a corner ball from Robben, via Müller, into Victor Valdéz’s goal for 2:0. Although slightly offside, the goal was allowed.
Barça awoke but briefly with an inexperienced shot from defender Marc Bartra, no match for German goalie Neuer.
The Catalan midfielders remained uninspired and Barcelona’s golden boy, Lionel Messi, was efficiently neutralised by the Germans throughout the match.
FC Bayern revved its engines twice more towards the end of the match. An ambitious Arjen Robben scored his team’s third goal after a counterattack, with the assistance of Müller’s uncensored body-check on Barcelona defender Jordi Alba.
It was the same Müller who closed the deal in the 82nd minute with goal number four. (A result that would prompt an upsurge in visitors to the FC Bayern headquarters and official store in Harlaching, where I live, during the next day. 🙂 )
Bayern is now one giant step closer to the Champions League Final at Wembley, while Barcelona must find the strength to recover from a bad case of wounded ego. (Either way, further excitement in my neighborhood is guaranteed. I can watch them train for free…)
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