Imago
It’s a real busy end to the year for Bayern, with three games a week for the next three weeks, including some huge encounters. Following Tuesday's Champions League fixture at home to Paris Saint-German, Vincent Kompany’s men then go to Borussia Dortmund for Der Klassiker in the Bundesliga on Saturday before hosting holders Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16 of the DFB Cup at the Allianz Arena.
“We’re excited about three highlight games,” said board member for sport Max Eberl. “We’ve got some big games and good opponents in a short space of time. We’ve created a sense of stability recently and have quality going forward.”
Harry Kane also spoke of a “big week” and appeared positive: “The team is ready, things all feel good. We need to keep up the momentum,” added the 31-year-old, fresh from a hat-trick in the 3-0 win over Augsburg on Friday.
Minjae Kim has helped marshal Bayern to six consecutive clean sheets ahead of taking on PSG. | FC Bayern
Not conceded since Barcelona
That feeling of confidence stems from the form of recent weeks, with Bayern winning all six competitive games since their 4-1 defeat away at Barcelona – without conceding a single goal. “We’ve built up confidence,” said Kompany, whose team are also still unbeaten in the Bundesliga after 11 rounds of fixtures and hold a six-point lead over Eintracht Frankfurt at the top of the domestic standings. But what’s mostly caught the eye of late is that defensive solidity.
“On the one hand, we can defend actively on the front foot, and on the other hand play in a controlled way, keep clean sheets and still create chances to score,” stated Eberl, who also reserved praise for some individuals. “Manuel is keeping clean sheets, Minjae and Upa are clearing up a lot in front of him. They mostly play in an aggressive way in close quarters with a large space behind them. The midfield gets forward and puts the opposition under a lot of pressure.” Goalkeeper Neuer also added that things are working “very well at the moment” and that the collaboration between defence and attack is seamless. That’s why he’s also optimistic looking ahead: “They’re high-class opponents, but every team also knows how good we are right now.”
„We’ve worked to create that respect again where the opponent has to say they will have to keep their shape, be really compact, because Bayern are once again a force in attack. And we’re also not neglecting our defence. It’s tough for opponents to counter against us. We’ve worked hard in recent weeks on making opponents sit back once again.”
Max Eberl on Bayern’s defensive solidity
PSG under pressure
Tuesday’s opponents come to Munich in desperate need for points. Luis Enrique’s side have managed only one win from their first four games of the league phase (1-0 against Girona on Matchday 1). They have since lost to Arsenal (2-0) and Atletico Madrid (2-1), leaving the champions of France down in 25th place and requiring results in the Champions League.
“We’re absolutely taking Paris very seriously. We know they’re a good team,” said Neuer, who’s also backing Bayern to perform again at home: “We’ve won all our games at home in the Champions League and want to continue that.” It’s two wins from two at the Allianz Arena thus far, starting with the 9-2 demolition of Dinamo Zagreb and then the 1-0 victory over Benfica. For Joshua Kimmich, the pace-setter in Kompany’s midfield, games against PSG are “always special nights. We need to play at the highest level.”
Kane, who boasts five goals already in the Champions League this season, is expecting an “open game against a team with technically good players.” Bayern and football fans in general can therefore look forward to a big Champions League night that kicks off a huge week for the Bavarians. Or as Eberl put it, Tuesday evening will hopefully be the “first party” of a good week.
Read up on the facts ahead of facing PSG:
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