Salzburg can “save grains”, Bayern quarrel
Salzburg sovereign, Bayern with problems: The dress rehearsals of the two teams in the league before the Champions League round of 16 second leg on Tuesday in Munich turned out differently. However, this has not changed anything in terms of the starting position. The “bulls” can only surprise despite the first leg 1-1 because of the “corona chaos” that has now been overcome. In any case, it is encouraging that the Munich team revealed weaknesses in the 1-1 draw against Leverkusen.
“We’re going to Munich with a very good feeling. We’ll approach the game in such a way that we’re in the quarter-finals afterwards. We’ve already put in a good performance in Salzburg and that will be the case in Munich too,” said the fit midfielder Luka Sucic after the 4-0 win against Altach on “Sky”. After an unwanted Corona break, he reported back with a hit. “It makes me even happier, it can go on like this,” said the 19-year-old.
Maximilian Wöber also scored after Covid-19 infection, with Mohamed Camara another regular player made his comeback against Altach. However, the performance could not be rated as a real test for Bavaria. Wöber, for example, was substituted at half-time, Camara in the 62nd minute. The intensity against Vorarlberg was also completely different, as will be the case in Munich. In addition, the guests, as bottom of the Bundesliga with ten defeats in a row, were not a touchstone.
“The game was just as we had wished it to be, also with a view to the game in Munich,” said coach Matthias Jaissle. Junior Adamu (12′), Wöber (22′) and Sucic (26′) scored early. “In the first half we did a lot right, after that we were certainly able to save a few grains in the direction of Tuesday,” explained Wöber. A not insignificant factor, as 17 positive corona cases have recently left their mark on players.
That’s also why Jaissle said after the Altach game that some players hadn’t lasted 90 minutes at all. His hope is there, however, that dying could change by Tuesday. “I have hope, but I’m not inside the players’ bodies, I don’t know how the disease struck. We’re trying to test them as best we can and then we’ll see what they come up with.”
Many eyes will be on Karim Adeyemi as an ex-Bayern kicker, upcoming Dortmund player and DFB team striker. Just before the Bayern game, he scored his first competitive goal of 2022 with his 15th league goal of the season (91st/penalty). “I’m glad he scored, that will give him self-confidence for Tuesday,” said Jaissle. It remains to be seen whether the recently absent Noah Okafor or Benjamin Sesko can play a role in the Allianz Arena. Jaissle expected the two to return “as soon as possible” without giving details.
Rasmus Kristensen will certainly play a major role. The right-back didn’t want to take any risks against Altach after he collided with Thomas Goiginger’s head in the 0-0 draw in Pasching against LASK on Wednesday. “After the game I had my doubts because after consulting the team doctor we decided not to take any risks,” said Kristensen. He feels great.
According to Jaissle, despite a strong performance in the first leg in Wals-Siezenheim against the “best team in the world”, the match will continue to be played as a “blatant outsider”. The little sovereign appearance of Munich against Leverkusen has not changed anything. “This result doesn’t matter at all, because Bayern are playing a really good season. Nothing has changed at all in terms of the starting situation,” stressed Jaissle. There is no trace of tension in him. “I’m still relaxed and calm, the anticipation is growing,” said Jaissle.
There was no sign of joy in Munich on Saturday. The first own goal in Thomas Müller’s long career in the 1-1 draw against Leverkusen in an irritating way pulled the plug on the Munich star ensemble, which had been totally dominant until then – a pointer for Salzburg. The drop in performance also raises doubts about the mental robustness of some players. “Obviously that also happens to the best,” Nagelsmann said calmly about Müller’s unsuccessful rescue operation in the 36th minute.
The ball landed in their own goal after a rather harmless free kick due to a voting problem. “I called that I had him,” said goalkeeper Sven Ulreich, who will probably be replaced against Salzburg by Manuel Neuer, who is fit again. But Müller was already in the jump. “The communication was apparently a bit too quiet. Thomas has to go there. He’s not happy, but it won’t knock him out for a long time,” said Nagelsmann.
The points lost in everyday league life are bearable for the league leaders, but on Tuesday a 1-1 draw would not be enough. “It counts on Tuesday. It’s a very important game, we have to win it,” central defender Niklas Süle warned urgently. He was amazed at how much “the unfortunate equalizer” shook his team. “We played one of the best first 30 minutes of the season. After the 1-1 draw we were unsure and collapsed a bit. That mustn’t happen to us,” said Süle.