There it is - the first trophy of a still young season! In their first competitive match of the 2022/23 campaign, FC Bayern brought home silverware: in their 5-3 win at RB Leipzig in the final of the German Supercup, Julian Nagelsmann's team had to fight for the trophy towards the end of the match after a rip-roaring first half. "In the first half it was outstanding. We didn't let them have anything," said Serge Gnabry, who was also annoyed that the game got tight towards the end: "We can't let them get close like that." But in the end it was enough, which also satisfied the coach: "We go into the new season feeling good. We're happy that we were able to defend the title," said Nagelsmann.
Reaction from the Bayern camp
Julian Nagelsmann: "I was very satisfied with the first half, we had very good moments with and without the ball. Our lead was deserved. In the second half, you could tell that we've only been training for ten days. But it was a deserved victory and an exciting game and good for the fans. We wanted to stamp our mark on things today, prove something to ourselves. The boys trained very well last week. So the victory is good for us. We go into the new season feeling good. We're happy we were able to defend the title."
Serge Gnabry: "The bottom line is that we're happy about the trophy and that we started the season like this. That is always positive. In the first half it was outstanding. We didn't let them have anything. In the second half, Leipzig scored a goal and got a bit of a lift. In the end, we can't let them get close like that, but it doesn't matter now. We won. We've set ourselves a lot of goals again this season and want to be on top across the board. In the Bundesliga we want to defend the title, in the cup we want to win it and in the Champions League we want to go as far as possible. Today was the way to start the season, with a cup."
Sadio Mané: "I am really, really happy to have won my first trophy with Bayern. I already said on the first day that this is a dream come true. First game, first title - I can't complain. I'm looking forward to more titles."
Reaction from the Leipzig camp
Oliver Mintzlaff (RB Leipzig managing director): "It was not a good first half. We were far too tense. We didn't take the game by the scruff of the neck. We have to defend better. [Conceding so easily] was not what we set out to do. In the second half, from the 50th minute onwards, it was much better. Of course, you wish you could play like that for the whole 90 minutes. Then it would have been some spectacle."
Domenico Tedesco (RB Leipzig head coach): "Bayern deserved to win, especially because of the first half. They simply played to their strengths. They have fast players in all positions who arrive from everywhere. That's crazy. But we were too timid when two goals down, among other things. At half-time, we changed things a bit and wanted to stage a comeback. In the end, we were closer to 4-4 than Bayern were to 5-3."
Willy Orban (RB Leipzig): "The bottom line is that we have to build on the second half. It was good, the first half wasn't. We did a lot of things wrong. The first goal we conceded knocked us sideways. The goal we conceded was too easy. We have to learn from that and do better. The second half was positive. We even had a chance to make it 4-4 at the end. For the neutral, it was certainly a good game."
The match report:
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