The eyes of the footballing world will be on Munich on Tuesday as Bayern play their Champions League semi-final first leg against Real Madrid (kick-off at 9pm CEST, coverage on fcbayern.com and in the FC Bayern app with our live text commentary and free web radio). For Bayern, it’s about ensuring a good position for the second leg in Spain on 8 May. “Bayern against Real Madrid – it’s one of the biggest fixtures. We need good form on the day in both games and to give our all to reach the final,” stated captain Manuel Neuer. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the first leg in our preview.
Recap all the build-up to the game on Monday:
State of play
Bayern come into the first game against Real in good form after four straight wins in all competitions. “We don’t need to hide. We’re in good shape, can approach the match with confidence,” said Joshua Kimmich at Monday’s press conference. Coach Thomas Tuchel also spoke of a “good mix of excitement and tension. It’s an absolutely worthy semi-final in the Champions League.”
The Bayern boss believes that focus for now needs to be fully on the 90 minutes at the Allianz Arena. “We want to play the game in isolation, without any background thoughts. That’s important to ensure we have the freedom to play a top game. We’ll try our all to win the game. Then we’ll know how things stand for the second leg,” explained the 50-year-old. “The job against Real is about getting enough people in attack to hurt them, but also not to expose ourselves,” Tuchel added. “We need a good balance of discipline and freedom. Obviously, we also need some luck in the game, momentum.”
Bayern will also look to their fans for great encouragement again after they created an electric atmosphere in the quarter-final second leg against Arsenal. “We need maximum support once again to get through the periods where we’ll have to suffer. Together with the fans we can create an atmosphere that will give us an advantage,” claimed Tuchel.
Leon Goretzka is ready to take on Real Madrid:
Opponent: Real Madrid
Bayern host one of European club football’s true heavyweights in Real Madrid. Los Blancos are the record winners in the Champions League with 14 titles. They have also been in excellent form this season and are on course to be crowned champions in Spain’s LaLiga. Former Bayern coach Carlo Ancelotti’s side won all six of their games in this year’s group stage before eliminating RB Leipzig and holders Manchester City to reach the semis. The Madrid club are on an 18-game unbeaten run across all competitions, most recently winning 1-0 away at Real Sociedad on Friday night, with many key players rested.
“Real have clear patterns of play. It’s a mix of a midfield diamond and sometimes two holding, two attacking in midfield. They’re very flexible, very mature and totally automated,” said Tuchel in his analysis. He added: “Playing against Real you’re also playing against their experience, the legend, the shirt. That’s why our approach will be very much about content.”
We’ve taken a closer look at Real Madrid:
Team news
Bayern remain without long-term absentees Kingsley Coman (adductor), Sacha Boey (hamstring), Bouna Sarr (ACL) and Tarek Buchmann (muscular). Matthijs de Ligt is still a doubt for Tuesday night after missing final training. Dayot Upamecano, Leroy Sane, Konrad Laimer and Jamal Musiala have all been carrying knocks but trained on Monday afternoon.
Real are missing former Bayern defender David Alaba as he recovers from a cruciate ligament injury. Right-back Dani Carvajal is also suspended after picking up his third yellow card of the campaign in the second leg against Manchester City.
Read up on the facts ahead of the game:
What the coaches say
You need the whole package against Real Madrid. We need to tease out that bit of luck.
Thomas Tuchel
We have confidence, even though we're playing against an opponent with great individual quality. It's a club with a great history and lots of experience in this competition. We're very pleased to be here. We got here with much work.
Carlo Ancelotti (Real Madrid)
All in red against Real!
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