Match Awards from Bayern Munich’s heartbreaking 6-5 aggregate loss to PSG
· Yahoo Sports
Bayern Munich failed to utilize their home ground advantage to book their ticket to the Puskás Aréna in another controversial night where Die Rekordmeister ultimately emerged as second best.
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Here are the Match Awards.
Jersey Swap: João Pinheiro, Marco Di Bello, and VAR
Traditionally, a football game is played 11 versus 11. Luckily for PSG, they had a 12th man on the pitch, and a 13th in the VAR boot ensuring Bayern — once again — fell victim to the “handball rule” once again.
In the 29th minute, Nuno Mendes escaped a red card after blocking a dangerous Bayern counter with his arm. Unfortunately for Die Rekordmeister, just seconds before Laimer’s dink struck Mendes’s arm, the Austrian was deemed to have handled the ball with his own arm — a debatable call dependent on camera angle.
Moments later, a PSG clearance from within their own box clearly struck João Neves’s outstretched arm. The result? No penalty — of course.
The rest of the game was littered with mistakes — including Lucas Beraldo’s shameless body check on Luis Díaz, which the 29-year-old winger earned a yellow card for — putting a wet blanket on the most anticipated game of the year.
If you count last week’s controversial handball call on Alphonso Davies and tonight’s snub on Neves, one can’t help but think about what might have been.
Honourable mention: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
The officiates stole the show, but Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is too good not to mention.
The Georgian winger wreaked havoc on Bayern’s left flank. Kvaratskhelia’s pace and tricky dribbling was too much for Bayern to deal with, the first goal being the perfect example. A quick one-two with Fabián Ruiz, followed by an immense burst of pace put the PSG winger in prime position to pick out Ousmane Dembélé, who was lurking in the box. The scoresheet may say “Ousmane Dembélé”, but that goal was all Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
After Arsenal’s victory over Atletico Madrid, Declan Rice has emerged as a dark horse contender for the Ballon d’Or, but don’t be surprised if the Englishman, and every other contender for that matter, emerges empty-handed as “Kvaradona” runs away with football’s most coveted individual award.
Der Kaiser: Alphonso Davies
The Canadian left-back brought some much needed energy to a team that was clearly gassed out.
Davies did well to pick out Harry Kane with his pinpoint pass in the dying embers of the game, earning him an assist.
The late impact left by “Phonzie” begs the question: Did Vincent Kompany make the right decision starting Josip Stanišić, or did Davies late impact work exactly how the Belgian manager intended it?
Der Fußballgott: No one
Perhaps this is a bit harsh, but an award is earned, and no one earned this award tonight.
At times, the midfield represented more of a mess than a control center. Call that a consequence of the game or a poor midfield performance, either way, Bayern’s midfield was far from its usual standard.
Der Bomber: Luis Díaz
Despite PSG’s victory, Warren Zaïre-Emery is going to be counting his lucky stars he escaped his encounter with Luis Díaz with his ankles intact.
The Colombian winger produced some spell-binding dribbling, causing Zaïre-Emery all sorts of issues, and even sitting him on the floor early in the first half.
Unfortunately, Díaz couldn’t carry his mischief into the second half after running out of gas, unable to find himself on the scoresheet.
Honourable mention: Harry Kane
The Englishman is inevitable, and he inevitably got Bayern’s equalizer in the 4th minute of added time. A consolation goal at most after being invisible for most of the game.
Meister of the Match: Manuel Neuer
Manuel Neuer’s Champions League knockout stage form is best represented by a roller coaster. One troubling performance, raising calls for the 40-year-old’s retirement, followed by a vintage Neuer display, producing outstanding saves and keeping his side in the fray.
Tonight, Bayern fans were treated to vintage Neuer who consistently produced magnificent saves, the best of which came in the 33rd minute with Neuer getting finger tips to Neves’s dangerous header. Neuer earned his side a lifeline and opportunity to find their way back into the game. Alas, it never came.
Considering there is a minute chance this could be Neuer’s last ever game for Bayern in the Champions League, he bowed out reminding everyone why he is the greatest goalkeeper of all time.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
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