Manuel Neuer & Co. were sporting satisfied grins as they sat on their ergometers in the FC Bayern team hotel on Saturday morning. The day after the overwhelming 8-2 win in the Champions League quarter finals against Barcelona, it was all about recovery for the players who started the match - and so one or two of them took the opportunity to look back over yesterday evening.
Salihamidžić: “An incredible first half”
"We'll only really realise it in the next few days", Leon Goretzka had commented, somewhat at a loss for words, to the reporters just after the final whistle. The German record champions displayed an almost unbelievable performance and left the Spanish giants with next to no chance. "It was a pleasure to watch the lads play," enthused board director for sport Hasan Salihamidžić, "it was an incredible first half."
No nerves despite unlucky equaliser
In an unfortunate attempt to make a clearance, the ball came off David Alaba's foot in such a way that it flew in a high arc over Manuel Neuer and into the back of the net. No-one was bothered the day after.
Especially in the first half, the Bavarians' strong pressing resulted in early possession and they hardly let the Catalans get into the game. For just a three-minute period after the unlucky 1-1 through a David Alaba own goal (7') the team led by Lionel Messi looked dangerous with two chances. The Munich side had Neuer to thank when he made a strong save against Luis Suárez, and they had a bit of luck when Messi hit the post. Then the German domestic double winners quickly went back on the attack. "We didn't let ourselves be distracted, we just kept going," said Goretzka.
No euphoria after historical night
FC Bayern are the first team to score eight goals in a Champions League knockout tie since the inception of the competition in 1992/93. The last time a side achieved a similar feat was in 1990, when Real Madrid beat FC Swarovski Tirol 9-1 in the European Champion Clubs’ Cup last 16.
The rest was absolute dominance and a victory absolutely deserved even on this scale. "We were outstanding," Hansi Flick praised his team. There was great euphoria after this "incredible Champions League night", as board member Oliver Kahn put it, but not in the Bayern camp, because the goal hasn't yet been reached. That much was clear just a few kilometers away from the team hotel.
Team fully focused - Pavard with individual training
We were present at the different training sessions on Saturday. Check out our gallery for the best images 👆
On one of the side pitches Benjamin Pavard, who missed the Barça match due to a ligament injury trained individually. And on the main pitch, the other players who only got little or no match-time on Friday were all fully focused and trained with the highest possible intensity. And they were of course in the best of moods. At FCB, nobody wants to rest on their laurels when they win one stage. "That was just step one of three," said Goretzka after the game, and Joshua Kimmich also quickly turned his attention back to the next task: "We're not finished yet."
What an incredible performance from the Bayern players! Click here to read all about the outstanding performance against Barcelona:
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