Barcelona’s two first-half goals saw them through to the Champions League final past an inspired Bayern Munich.
Bayern Munich were in a record-breaking slump when they hosted Barcelona at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday night. After suffering a 3-0 loss at the hands of the Spanish side in the first leg at the Camp Nou, Bayern had an overwhelming task facing them. While Pep Guardiola’s side has staged some impressive comebacks in past Champions League matches, not many sides have the ability to score on Barcelona while also keeping their world-class front three at bay. If any side in the world had the potential to overcome a 3-0 deficit to Barcelona, it would be the side lead by the genius tactician who made a name for himself at the Catalan club.
Bayern Munich looked much more confident in the opening half of this match than they had in the first leg. This time they started with four at back and looked better prepared to handle the mesmerizing dribbles from Messi as well as the constant pressure from Suarez. Rakitic proved to be a threat as well when he forced a fantastic save from Neuer with a well-timed run. While Bayern looked a little more solid at the back, Barcelona’s back four looked a mess.
The visitors shaky start at back was quickly punished by Bayern. Benatia put the home side on the scoreboard with a shockingly easy free-header. Completely unchallenged, the defender sent a strong header towards the near post, narrowly beating ter Stegen. Bayern had found the wind that they needed in their sails and they were quickly energized.
In spite of their scramble at the back, Barcelona’s three super stars up top were still in top form. Seven minutes after Bayern began to dig their way out of the hole they had created for themselves, Barcelona sent a swift reminder of how disgustingly talented their strike force is. Lionel Messi delivered a brilliant pass that sliced through Bayern’s back line with ease. Suarez timed his run to perfection and collected the ball with ease, delivering an easy pass off to Neymar. All the Brazilian had to do was smash the shot home.
Now needing to score four goals to see themselves through, Bayern Munich refused to be disheartened. In the eighteenth minute, Muller’s glancing header forced a spectacular finger-tip save from ter Stegen- the young German keeper proving yet again that he is one of the best signings the club has made. Barcelona settled into a passing game, defending by possessing. Suarez was a constant concern up top and both Rakitic and Messi were brilliant conductors up the middle. For the home side, Thiago was a joy to watch in the midfield as he demonstrated his dribbling skills, making fools of Barcelona’s defensive midfield players before slotting a dangerous ball through to Muller. The visitors response to Thaigo’s penetrating run was another goal. Boateng was caught ball watching on the far side where he was tasked with keeping a handle on Neymar and foolishly held Suarez onside as the Uruguayan received a long pass and simply had to tap the ball across the box once again to the unmarked Brazilian. Neymar beat Neuer near post to net his 37th goal of the season.
Bayern Munich still refused to be defeated. They continued to push up and tried to utilize the pockets of possession they gained. They forced another fantastic save from ter Stegen when Schweinsteiger delivered a solid header that took a sudden dip towards the goal. As the first half wound to a close, Thiago continued to prove that he was the best man on the pitch for Bayern on the night when he made another fantastic solo run through the midfield and past the frazzled back four of Barcelona. His deflected shot was scooped up by Lewandowski who attempted to place a powerful shot towards the opposite post that ter Stegen had committed to. Incredibly, the German produced the save of his career, stopping the shot with a strong arm and then making a fast dive to bat the ball off the line.
Barcelona were very much saved by the whistle that indicated the end of the first half. Their back four had looked frazzled, Bayern’s best chances had come from easy, unchallenged crosses from the wings, and ter Stegen had been forced to make three simply spectacular saves to preserve his side’s advantage. Guardiola seemed to know what he needed to do to inspire his team, for the Bayern Munich that came out to play the second half was more like the Bayern Munich that secured the Bundesliga title with four weeks to spare, not the Bayern Munich suffering their worst streak in 17 years.
Without Suarez up top causing problems on and off the ball, Barcelona laid off the gas up top and instead tried to keep their defense in order. Bayern Munich relaxed a bit in back and were able to invest more numbers going forward. Muller looked like a new player in the second forty-five, making perfectly timed runs, sending in perfect passes and causing some serious problems for the visitors.
In the 58th minute, after a long period of Bayern creating wonderful chances but missing the goal by fractions, Lewandowski was finally able to capitalize. Mascherano was unable to successfully defend the big Polish striker and slipped as he tried to poke the ball away. With that, Lewandowski had a clear shot on goal and made no mistake, easily beating ter Stegen.
Thomas Muller finally found the back of the net in the 74th minute following a fantastic series of passes from Bayern. His shot was confidently placed and put Bayern in the lead on the night 3-2. Had it not been for the massive deficit they allowed to accumulate in the first leg, Bayern Munich looked strong enough in the second half of the second leg to pull off a comeback. The five goals in favor of Barcelona and the wrath of Messi, Neymar and Suarez proved to be too much to overcome in the fifteen minutes remaining in the match. Barcelona were rightfully through after a historical performance at the Camp Nou and another display of offensive magic in Germany.
