FC Bayern traveled to London in battle mode. “Nothing is impossible,” says sports director Max Eberl. Thomas Tuchel also underlines the clear goal: “We have a chance of going to the semi-finals.”
On Tuesday (April 9th, 9 p.m. in the radio report), FC Bayern has the quarter-final duel against top English club FC Arsenal in the Champions League.
Beforehand, everyone at Säbener Straße dealt with the defeat against 1. FC Heidenheim and expressed their opinion. “Now it’s over,” said sports director Max Eberl before departure. Now “you have to go to London to some extent in this fighting mode that Thomas Müller also mentioned.” They always looked very, very good in the Champions League. It’s a “high hurdle in London, but as the saying goes: nothing is impossible.”
Focus on what comes now
Tuchel also sees the big challenge for his battered team in the first quarter-finals of the 2023/24 season. “Arsenal is currently the best team in the Premier League, all the statistics show that. They are in absolutely top form.” It is therefore clear to the coach: “It will be a big test.” He expects “the same performance, the same passion and “A different result,” like last year in the quarter-finals against Manchester City. “That’s the level we expect from ourselves.” And warned the team: “We need a performance at this level.”
Tuchel: “Knowing our strengths”
Tuchel also made it clear: “A season is never lost. We are deservedly criticized for our performances in the cup and the league.” Therefore, the football teacher once again admitted that the consistency in performance was not “as we expect”. In the Champions League, however, things have been at a high level so far. However, in order to make it to the semi-finals, “we need two absolutely top performances.”
The opponent won’t be easy to crack because Arsenal dominates the most difficult league in the world, but “we know our strengths and how we want to hurt them. We have more experience in the Champions League, it’s different football in the Champions League than in the Premier League. We want to use that to our advantage.”
Sané: “It will definitely be a tough game”
In the top game, Manuel Neuer will be in Bayern’s goal again and will provide the team with support. It’s nice to have the captain back on the pitch, said Eberl. “With his presence and his experience, he can also cover the boys’ backs to a certain extent.”
In addition, Leroy Sané is ready for action again. “Before Heidenheim the pain was so great” that it would have made no sense to play, said the 28-year-old. The problems with sprinting and shooting have calmed down. “Everything was okay during training, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.” And added: We “definitely want to play a good game over 90 minutes.”
No Bayern fans allowed in the stadium
However, support will be missing because officially no Bayern fans are allowed in the stadium. The UEFA disciplinary committee sentenced the record champions to this ban after the club’s supporters violated probation conditions in the first leg of the round of 16 against Lazio. “Of course you always want to have your own fans there. Nevertheless, we want to play our best game and give something back to the fans,” said Sané.
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Quelle: BR24 im Radio
April 8, 2024 – 8:55 p.m