Barcelona start their UCL campaign with a defeat against Bayern Munich
By Zoheb Alam
Barcelona have kicked off their Champions League campaign with a defeat against Bayern Munich. A goal from Thomas Muller followed by Robert Lewandowski’s brace ensured that the Bundesliga outfit were able to claim all three points from their away fixture at the Camp Nou.
On Tuesday, Barcelona were expected to receive tough competition from the visiting side. On the other side, the German giants lived up to their elite status as they dominated the game from the very first minute. The likes of Sane, Lewandowski, and Musiala were a constant threat to the Barca backline.
The hosts received their first setback in the game as they saw a Thomas Muller shot being deflected off Eric Garcia into their own net. There were encouraging signs from the Barca attack as they tried to dictate play in the last 5 mins of the first half. Unfortunately, they ended the first half without any proper attacking threat.
The second half of the game was no different to the former as Bayern continued to threaten the Blaugrana defense with swift passes and steady crosses. Robert Lewandowski added the second goal as he was able to convert a tap in from close range. The hosts were unable to stage a comeback after the second goal and by the hour mark, Koeman’s side looked shattered and exhausted to put up a proper fight to the Bundesliga giants.
Things became worse at Camp Nou as Lewandowski scored his second goal of the night as he pounced upon Gnabry’s rebound. In the end, three goals from the visiting side seemed to have numbed the voices of the home fans as some Blaugrana fans were spotted in disbelief and disappointment.
Manager Ronald Koeman, too, looked unhappy with his side’s performance. But for now, it seems that the Dutchman will not look to press the panic button and instead would hope to motivate his side for the upcoming fixtures this month.
Barcelona: 3 Positives from Barcelona’s Transfer Window. dark. Next
On the positive side, Barcelona did show some encouraging signs in the field. Ronald Araujo, Gerard Pique were absolutely solid at the back and had prevented the visitors from piling more misery in their own backyard. From the attack perspective, there were encouraging signs from Frenkie De Jong as he made some excellent runs into the Bayern box but was unable to produce a solid chance for his team.
What next for Barcelona?
Next week, Barcelona are slated to face Granada at home and hence they will need to bounce back from this underwhelming performance against Bayern. Ronald Koeman will have to fix the loopholes in his team and will have to ensure that his side remains solid for the rest of the season.