The way Bayern Munich played against Real Madrid right at the Bernabeu partly showed the image of the European champion this season. The most prominent individuals of the team such as Michael Olise or Harry Kane all shone. There were times when the score could be increased to 3-0, but just because of bad luck, the Bundesliga representative could not sink the opponent right in their home ground. However, the final score of 2-1 is a large enough amount of capital for the "Bayern Munich" to be confident before the second leg at the Allianz Arena.
The attack is so good, Bayern is still always assured when underneath is legendary goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. The German goalkeeper just passed the age of 40 not long ago. He had an excellent match day when he saved countless opportunities for Los Blancos, especially Kylian Mbappe's finish.
Bayern is very confident in defeating Real Madrid in this quarter-final to end their winning streak against the La Liga representative in the Champions League since 2012.
If there is anything regrettable for Bayern, it is the miss of center-back Dayot Upamecano. Champions League is always like that, any team that wins the championship needs some luck, besides their inherent strength. If that situation had happened and the French center-back had scored, Bayern would probably have had a semi-final ticket in hand.
In the past 18 months, from a player who was only at a potential level, Upamecano has matured a lot and become a pillar of Bayern. Although struggling to resist the opponent's attacks, if it were Upamecano of 2024, perhaps Bayern's defense would not have stood firm like that under pressure from Real Madrid.
Not only Harry Kane or Michael Olise, the away team's attack also witnessed the sublimation of Luis Diaz. The Colombian striker scored 1 goal and achieved a very good playing state, despite being closely marked by his former Liverpool teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Diaz's goal after receiving a pass from Gnabry is how the 29-year-old striker often does this season. According to Opta, no Bayern Munich player has made more runs behind the opponent's defense than Diaz (80 times) in domestic leagues and European cups.
Before the quarter-finals, no team in the Champions League had more decisive passes (passes leading to shots) than Bayern. Olise and Kane still played as well as usual, but it was Diaz who started the match with a solo and sharp finish, just like the form he showed throughout the season.
In the post-match press conference, captain Vincent Kompany shared that the pressure at the Bernabeu in the last 15 minutes of the match was too great, but this was something the whole team had anticipated and was ready to bear similar pressure in the second leg at home.
The young Belgian coach also emphasized that although they were leading in the first leg, there was no reason for his team not to set a goal to win another victory at the Allianz Arena. At the end of the interview, Kompany gave special praise to goalkeeper Neuer and emphasized that Bayern would not be successful without such key players.
