Bayern are taking to the European stage for the first time in 2022 as they head to Austrian double winners Red Bull Salzburg for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday. Find out in our facts and stats why the German champions are favourites and why it’s a historic clash in several ways.
1. Bayern dominate German-Austrian meetings
Bayern won both previous competitive encounters with Salzburg, 6-2 away and 3-1 at the Allianz Arena in last season’s Champions League group stage. Since the sole European defeat to an Austrian team – 1-0 at Rapid Vienna in the Cup Winners’ Cup almost exactly 55 years ago – FCB have remained unbeaten in all nine meetings with teams from their near neighbours (W7, D2). Germany’s most successful club has also progressed in all three previous knockout ties with Austrians (1966/67 against Rapid, as well as 1985/86 and 1986/87 against Austria Vienna).
Bayern ran out clear 6-2 winners last season in their only previous game in Salzburg.
2. FCB unbeatable on the road
Bayern are unbeaten in their last 21 away games in the Champions League (W17, D4) since their last loss away at Paris Saint-Germain in September 2017. It’s the longest run in the competition’s history.
3. Nagelsmann’s team with best record in the Champions League
Bayern equalled their club record from 2019/20 for the best Champions League group stage in their history when they qualified with 18 points and a +19 goal difference. Julian Nagelsmann’s team are the competition’s outright top scorers with 22 goals, have conceded the fewest (three, same as Real Madrid) and kept the most clean sheets (four, same as four other teams). Liverpool and Ajax are the only other teams to have won all six matches in 2021/22. The last team to win their opening seven games of a Champions League campaign was Bayern in 2019/20. It’s a feat only otherwise achieved by Real Madrid (2014/15) and Barcelona (2002/03).
Bayern rounded off a perfect group stage with a 3-0 win over Barcelona in December.
4. Salzburg into the history books
This is Salzburg’s fourth appearance in the Champions League – a record for an Austrian club – and they got 10 points from the group stage with a +2 goal difference. That is a new national record and also saw them become the first Austrian club to progress to the knockout stage in the Champions League. The last Austrians to make it to the round of 16 in the European Cup – the predecessor competition – were Wacker Innsbruck in 1990/91. Despite a 2-2 draw at home to Real Madrid in the second leg, it wasn’t enough to go further after being thrashed 9-1 in the first game in Spain.
5. Sane loves the European stage
Leroy Sane has been seriously impressive in the Champions League this season, scoring five and setting up four goals in six appearances. That is already a personal best for the 26-year-old in a Champions League campaign. Only Ajax’s Sebastien Haller (12) and teammate Robert Lewandowski (11) had a hand in more goals in the group stage. And the Germany international will be hopeful of adding to that in the round of 16, as he and Lewandowski were the only FCB players to score in both meetings with Salzburg last season.
Lewandowski and Sane have had a hand in the most goals for Bayern in this season’s Champions League.
6. Lewandowski set for milestone after top scoring in 2021
Best FIFA Men’s Player Lewandowski was the top scorer in the Champions League in the 2021 calendar year with 11 goals. He got nine in this group stage alone, which was one more than Salzburg as a team. The striker is now in line to make his 50th away appearance in the competition. The record for most goals in the first 50 away games in the Champions League is currently held by Lionel Messi with 34. However, that record will automatically go to Lewandowski if when features, owing to the Pole’s 37 goals on the road already.
7. Meeting of young coaches
Never before has a Champions League fixture had two coaches that were as young as Nagelsmann (34 years, 208 days) and Salzburg’s Matthias Jaissle (33 years, 316 days). They have a combined age of just over 68. By means of comparison, the coach of Bayern’s group opponent Dynamo Kyiv, Mircea Lucescu, was 76 years and 132 days on the final day of the group stage.
We’ve taken a closer look at our opponents from Salzburg:
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