Bayern’s impressive early-season form leaves Chelsea no chance

Harry Kane had joked before the game that they don’t like to hear his name at Chelsea. It could be down to the number of goals he’s scored against the Blues down the years. The Bayern striker will now be even less popular in West London after Wednesday night and his brace in Bayern’s opening 3-1 win over Chelsea in the Champions League. The England captain has now scored 95 goals for the Bavarians, whose run of winning their first game of the Champions League campaign now stretches well over 20 years, doing so by an aggregate score of 63-8.

Little respect for the stats

The Premier League side certainly tried their best to change that stat and get something from the Allianz Arena. Starting the game with almost the same line-up that won the Club World Cup against Paris Saint-Germain, they got off to a confident start in Munich. It was as if the Blues weren’t bothered by the fact that Bayern had already scored 19 goals across five competitive fixtures this season, nor that FCB hadn’t lost at home to an English club since March 2019. “This game was a big hurdle,” said captain Manuel Neuer afterwards. “You know you’re playing against the Club World Cup winners. And we obviously know about Chelsea’s form coming into this.”

It meant it took a bit of time for Bayern to exert their dominance. That came when Michael Olise’s dangerous cross was put into his own net by Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah. And just six minutes later, things got even better as Kane turned Moises Caicedo and was brought down in the box. The striker coolly converted to make it 2-0 inside 27 minutes. He’s now scored 15 of his 16 penalties in the Champions League, and the balance of power looked to be restored at the Allianz Arena.

Clinical finishing

However, with Bayern fans still celebrating, Chelsea got one back on the break as Cole Palmer put away the visitors’ first attempt of note. Olise remained a constant livewire down the right wing and was enjoying his own personal duel with Marc Cucurella, which was almost worth coming to watch in itself. Bayern’s man was certainly enjoying the upper hand, producing dangerous balls in behind and having attempts himself, like a volley that flew narrowly wide.

Bayern were dominant and pressing high, but Chelsea posed a threat of their own throughout. There were few moments of rest on the Allianz Arena pitch, and it was going to need that third Bayern goal to calm nerves. “Their team has quality, can always hit back and score a goal,” said Konrad Laimer, who would set up Kane after breaking from deep, but the striker was thwarted by Robert Sánchez. He produced another stop to deny Olise and keep Chelsea in the game. It remained tight, hard-fought and exciting. “Obviously you need to do your bit, but Chelsea aren’t just a job. They’re a crowning, given the way we played today and beat them at home,” Neuer explained.

Old nemesis settles things

And it was Chelsea’s old nemesis who came back to haunt them and settle matters in Munich. The ever-impressive Kane pounced on a loose touch by Malo Gusto under intense pressure to slot in the third. “Pressing with us doesn’t mean winning the ball back but that we want to score,” Vincent Kompany explained. It ultimately brought Kane his fourth brace of the season and 10th goal of 2025/26. “I think possession was key, finding the right angle, helping each other,” the goalscorer stated. “The longer the game went on, the more tired they looked. Spaces opened up and we were able to use them. It was a hard, physical game, but I’m really happy.” Laimer added: “You can make a lot of things happen for you with intensity. We showed that today.”

A statement in Europe

All in all, it was an excellent result over the Club World Cup holders and a statement to start the Champions League campaign. And it’s not just the name of Kane at Chelsea that will be a byword for fear and respect. This whole Bayern team is in excellent early-season form. “We’re riding a positive wave right now and want to keep it positive for as long as possible,” said Neuer as he brought up 100 career wins in the Champions League. Kompany, however, was keen to put the brakes on the delight a bit: “It’s still too early in the season to write about how well we’re performing.”

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