FC Bayern Women beat Manchester United 3-2

FC Bayern Women won their final friendly of pre-season 3-2 against Manchester United Women in Herzogenaurach. The English side took the lead at the Adi Dassler Sportplatz through two first-half goals from Leah Galton and Geyse. However, Alexander Straus’s team – at no point outplayed – hit back in the second half and turned things around thanks to Pernille Harder, Klara Bühl and Linda Dallmann.

Bayern debut for Eriksson

Summer signing Magdalena Eriksson started the game for her first minutes in a Bayern shirt. Compared to the last friendly against Fortuna Sittard, Lina Magull, Giulia Gwinn, Katharina Naschenweng, Jovana Damnjanovic, Sydney Lohmann and Georgia Stanway also all started. It was the latter’s first appearance since the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where Stanway and England finished runners-up.

Behind at the break

Bayern created their first chance of note with five minutes gone as Lohmann won the ball and Gwinn crossed, but Magull missed her header by a matter of inches. It was then former FCB player Galton who put United ahead in the 15th minute. The Bundesliga champions had a chance for an immediate response, but Eriksson was unable to convert Naschenweng’s delivery. Instead, it was the visitors from England who struck next when Geyse ran onto a backpass from Glodis Vigosdottir with 22 minutes played. However, Bayern continued to dominate proceedings, but a string of corners and a Stanway effort from range failed to bring a goal.

Deservedly level through Harder and Bühl

As planned, Straus made a number of changes for the second half that saw Stanway, Lohmann, Magull, Eriksson and Damnjanovic make way for Sam Kerr, Jill Baijings, Bühl, Tainara and Lea Schüller. Bühl and Schüller in particular posed a threat, but it was Baijings who created the next goal with a lovely ball to Harder, who saw off two defenders and brought it back to 2-1 with almost an hour gone. Bayern continued to push and substitute Dallmann was brought down in the box. Bühl stepped up and converted the penalty to bring it back to 2-2 with 66 minutes gone.

Dallmann nets winner

Bayern didn’t let up, and after Baijings hit the bar and Maximiliane Rall failed to take a good chance, the winning goal finally came as Rall got down the right, squared at the right moment and Dallmann timed her run perfectly to put away and make it 3-2.

Time to start the real stuff

Straus and his team kick off the 2023/24 campaign with their first competitive fixture against Andernach in the DFB Cup on Sunday, 10 September. Five days later they officially open the new Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga season away at Freiburg on Friday, 15 September.