There’s probably room for a Peaky Blinders reference here, but Bayern Munich have a tough test coming up in Birmingham, England this week in the form of a trip to face Aston Villa in the Champions League.
Both sides are coming off of comprehensive wins in matchday 1 of the competition; Bayern having beaten Dinamo Zagreb 9-2 and Vill having beaten Young Boys 3-0.
Ironically enough, both sides are also coming off of domestic league draws; Bayern having drawn 1-1 with Bayer Leverkusen and Villa having drawn 2-2 with Ipswich Town. While Bayern sit atop the Bundesliga table, Villa could have gone level at the top of the Premier League table with Liverpool had they not given up a late goal to Ipswich’s Liam Delap, but Unai Emery more than likely had one eye on the Bayern visit midweek.
This will be the first time the two sides have met in Europe since the 1981/82 cup final in which Villa won 1-0 in Rotterdam. Peter Withe scored the winner on the night. This time around, Vincent Kompany and Bayern will certainly hope the result goes a bit differently.
For such a rare clash between two sides with such rich history, board member for sport Max Eberl is very much looking forward for the tough test away from home for the Rekordmeister. “It’s a big pleasure to play against a very good opponent. It was the most difficult draw you could have got in pot 4 – away in Birmingham. Vinnie has already said a lot that the stakes are very high because it will be an intense game. The performances of the last few weeks have contributed to us going there with optimism. We are going there to win,” he stressed in the mixed zone on the way to the airport for the flight to Birmingham (via @iMiaSanMia).
Kompany is certainly no stranger to visits to Villa Park, both as a player and manager, but this will be his first taste of European action there as a manager and player. Villa had not been in European competition for quite some time until recently, but they have shown how good of a side they can be under Emery.
Looking for more thoughts and analysis on the weekend in Germany? Great, then check out our Bavarian Podcast Works — Bundesliga Rundown with Marcus Iredahl. The show is available on Patreon, Spotify, or below:
