A comeback that sends a message: Why FCB women will take away more than just a point from the clash with Real

It was clear shortly after the draw for this year’s league phase that this match would have a special appeal all of its own. FC Bayern Women were drawn alongside Real Madrid – in terms of club names, it hardly gets any bigger than that. It was also a first, as the two teams had never before faced each other in a competitive match. So anticipation for the evening was high, and the omens looked good. The Munich side had never lost any of their previous 16 group stage/league phase matches at home. Yet after just 22 minutes, that run was in danger of coming to an end.

Ice-cold greetings from Madrid

It took just 27 seconds for Bayern to win their first corner through Bernadette Amani. It came to nothing, and was an immediate foretaste of the problems that would plague them from the outset. Klara Bühl put it succinctly: “In the final third, our passes were often too imprecise, which allowed Real to launch counter-attacks time and again.” In the seventh minute, one of those counter-attacks was launched, and Linda Caicedo showed just why she's set to become one of the most exciting players of the future. The Bavarian defence could do little to stop her dribble to the byline and the subsequent assist that led to the early lead.

Although the home side controlled the game, a goal from former Bayern player Lineth Beerensteyn meant the score was 2–0 after 22 minutes. “Real were particularly alert in the early stages; we were a bit slow off the mark, and our positioning on the free-kick in front of goal was also off,” noted goalkeeper Ena Mahmutovic, who was powerless to stop the header.

Separating the wheat from the chaff

Where most teams would have fallen apart, let their heads drop or been overwhelmed by the moment and needed time to come to terms with the setback, this is where a top-class team really shows its mettle. Head coach José Barcala was already certain of where his team stands: “We are a world-class side because we showed a real winner’s mentality today and we have world-class players in our squad. ” One of them is Bühl. In the 30th minute, she delivered a corner kick into the six-yard box with such precision – down to the second – that Edna Imade, who rose higher than any of the players in red and white surrounding her, had virtually only to nod the ball in for her first Champions League goal.

It was this goal, if nothing else, that completely turned the match on its head. Real could barely keep possession; sustained periods of build-up play were no longer possible due to the Munich side's increased workrate. At the break, Las Blancas had completed just 125 passes. Bayern, by contrast, had recorded nearly twice as many, with 244. Yet despite their dominance, the better stats and greater possession (63 per cent at half-time), they lacked the cutting edge in the final third to create the decisive chances.

Dance with the ballet

Giulia Gwinn, however, wasn’t particularly concerned about this issue. The injured full-back was confident at half-time: “It doesn’t matter how we equalise. After that, we can still play for the win. The only important thing is that it comes as early as possible.” According to her, the foundation for this also lies in Barcala’s approach: “He’s always very rational, analyses the game in real time and always prepares us very well for the second half with precise pointers.”

She was to be proved right on both counts, as the first ten minutes after the restart were all about Bayern’s attacking play. This time, however, with the subtle difference that the attacks resulted in shots on goal, rather than fizzling out into nothing as before. One of these shots was initially struck by Linda Dallmann too centrally towards Merle Frohms’s goal, but the rebound fell to the feet of a player who knows exactly how to complete this dance. With a slight feint with her upper body in one direction and a delicate switch from her right to her left foot, Momoko Tanikawa – who was named Player of the Match at the end of the game – in just a fraction of a second created the space she needed to find the perfect line between three White Ballet defenders and equalise. And as if it were destined to be, it all happened again in the seventh minute, this time in the second half.

After the equaliser, it seemed only a matter of time before Bayern would get the winner. That corner after 27 seconds was followed by six more, whilst Real did not win a single one. In the end, the stats read 16 shots on goal to 7, with a pass completion rate of 87 per cent compared to 76 per cent. And yet the decisive goal failed to materialise. Neither scorer Imade nor Pernille Harder, who came seventh at the Ballon d’Or were able to capitalise on the numerous chances. Time and again, they were just a few centimetres off target, or Frohms was there at the last second to make the save.

Barcala offered an explanation for this after the match: “The final third is the most challenging area in football, because that’s where the opposition are tightly packed and the spaces are extremely small. This makes precision, efficiency and perfect teamwork all the more important.” He added that this was something his side needed to keep working on. And so it was symbolic that Sophie Proost saw her attempt in the last attack of the game come off the outside of the post.

What pleased him more was the strength his team repeatedly demonstrated in continuing to influence proceedings on the pitch, even when they did not fully control the game. Indeed, throughout the entire second half, they allowed the visitors just the one long-range attempt on goal.

Pride and self-belief

Naturally, the players looked somewhat disappointed with the result after the game. “We deserved three points tonight,” said Harder after the final whistle, yet in the end her pride in what they had achieved prevailed: “Even so, we can be happy with our comeback.” Klara Bühl took a similar view: “We can be proud of how we fought back and we even deserved a third goal.” In the end, they have five points from three matches in a competition “where every point counts”, as Franzi Kett aptly put it.

What the team can take away from this is the self-belief that comes from realising that, even after a poor start against a top European side, they can still turn a match around and neutralise their opponents’ strengths. They kept their composure, played with a forward-thinking approach throughout and, according to Kett, showed the resilience to keep coming back. If Bayern keep this in mind, they will once again be rewarded with three points for their performance in their next matches.

🗞️ The match report on the game: