"Football is a simple game where twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and in the end, Real Madrid win."
That’s how Germany’s Spiegel magazine reacted to Bayern Munich’s 2-1 Champions League semi-final first-leg defeat to Real Madrid last night, adapting Gary Lineker’s classic phrase.
Bayern have been eliminated by Spanish opposition every year since they last won the tournament themselves in 2013, three times at the semi-final stage, twice by Real Madrid and always after losing the first leg.
Now they face an uphill battle in the Santiago Bernabeu next week if they are to prevent another Spanish Inquisition.
In the absence of genuine competition in the Bundesliga, this was Bayern’s big test – a chance to measure themselves against the very best. Not that the reigning European champions delivered a vintage performance, which makes last night all the more frustrating for the Bavarians.
“We saw how vulnerable Real are; we’ve contributed more to this result than they have,” lamented Thomas Müller. “They’re sitting in the dressing room now and must be asking themselves how they’ve won the game.”
“I’ve never seen such a weak Real Madrid in Munich,” added defender Niklas Süle. “If we had won 5-2, there could have been no complaints.”
They had a point. Perhaps still unnerved by the manner in which Juventus were able to recover from a 3-0 deficit in the last round, Zinedine Zidane’s side were more cautious and well-organised, waiting to capitalise on their opponents’ errors.
It was a far cry from the galactico galas Madrid delivered on this ground in 2014, or against Bayern’s ten men in the Bernabeu in last season’s quarter-final. But the mistakes did come, and the champions did pounce. Twice.
28' Kimmich ⚽️
44' Marcelo ⚽️
57' Asensio ⚽️
Last night's goals in 60 seconds 👇
For Bayern, it was a lesson in taking chances. Franck Ribery was particularly profligate and Mats Hummels and Robert Lewandowski also wasted opportunities. For the latter, it was a disappointing evening against the club with which he has been linked the most.
The Pole passed swiftly through the mixed zone in the Allianz Arena, head down, without a word. Real’s interest in the 29-year-old is no secret, and the feeling is said to be mutual.
Lewandowski is said to be comfortable in Munich but, unlike the born-and-bred Bavarian Müller and the departed Bastian Schweinsteiger and Philipp Lahm, he has little emotional attachment to Bayern, nor is he particularly close to his teammates away from football.
He could have been forgiven for seeing Cristiano Ronaldo isolated up front in Real’s 4-1-4-1 formation and thinking that could be his role, releasing the Portuguese to cause more damage from deeper positions.
As for Bayern, they will take heart from the chances they created – but they must be more ruthless.
They will also look to the other stirring comebacks which have characterised this season’s competition as inspiration ahead of the second leg, but it seems unlikely that Real Madrid will suffer a repeat of the collapse they experienced against Juventus.
The lingering feeling in Germany is that Bayern have missed a huge opportunity. Because if they couldn’t beat a comparatively pedestrian Real Madrid with all the chances they created last night, then when can they beat them?
