One day after the 3-1 defeat in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Youth League, the disappointment is still heavy at the FC Bayern Campus. Nevertheless, the German record champions' U19 side can look back on a historic European campaign, in which the youngsters reached the last eight for the first time. Read about what made the U19s stand out this season.
Spirit and passion
Over the course of the tournament, the U19s demonstrated their comeback qualities and spirit on a number of occasions. The team only won one of the first three games, meaning they needed wins in the second half of the group stage to progress. And they did that with flying colours. The Bavarians also scored no fewer than six goals in the final 15 minutes, including three in stoppage time. In the two meetings with Manchester United (80th and 79th minute) and in the play-off clash at Basel (90'+4), they sealed the deal with goals to make it 2-0, while the winner in the home match against Galatasaray also came at the death (90'+4). Only the strong comeback in the second group game in Copenhagen went unrewarded as FCB slipped to a 3-2 loss despite two late goals.
FCB top scorer Emirhan Demircan scored the winner against Galatasaray in stoppage time.
Winning run
It wasn't only qualification for the quarter-finals that was historic, but also the run that the team went on to get there. Never before had FCB U19s won five consecutive games in the UEFA Youth League! It was wins all the way from early November to late February as the Munich boys entered the history books.
The ever-present
Javier Fernández was the constant in the team. The Spaniard, who's worn the red shirt since the start of 2023, played every minute of all nine Youth League fixtures, sometimes as captain. With three goals he was also the side's second-highest scorer, one behind Emirhan Demircan.
Unfortunate exit against Olympiacos
After going toe to toe with United, Galatasaray, Copenhagen, Basel and Feyenoord, the Youth League journey eventually ended with a 3-1 defeat to Olympiacos. The visitors needed just eight minutes to go into a 3-0 lead, with Robert Ramsak's goal in the second half proving to be no more than a consolation.
Altintop: Proud of our boys
Halil Altintop, sporting director at the FC Bayern Campus, reflects on a good season despite the defeat. "On the one hand, we're obviously disappointed that we didn't make it to the Final Four tournament," said the Turk. "Nonetheless, that's outweighed by the delight about the performances our young team have shown in this Youth League campaign. We qualified for the quarter-finals for the first time in Campus history, which is further proof of the excellent work being done by everyone involved in our academy. We're proud of our boys, who have taken a step forward in their development thanks to these experiences, and will continue to support them with the same dedication in order to establish them in professional football in the long term."
Marić: Defeats part of the learning process
U19 head coach René Marić sees the situation similarly. "It was exactly the kind of game we were warned about," assessed the 31-year-old. "Olympiacos went fully for the win and struck at the right moment. We have to and will learn from such games. I think a lot of things have developed here since the Campus opened. We're working every day on making the players better, in order to create more great stories."
Freund: Played a good season
First-team sporting director Christoph Freund also had praise for the U19s after Tuesday's game: "The team were in the quarter-finals for the first time and have played a good season. All that was missing was the crowning. We were one of the youngest teams in the competition and had a few boys there who have a lot of potential." The Austrian, like Altintop, also had a message for the future: "For us it's now about nurturing and pushing the players further, to bring them closer to the first team."
The match report from the quarter-final against Olympiacos:
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