Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany knows the storylines are out there ahead of his team’s Champions League match vs. FC Barcelona, but do not expect the coach to get tricked into saying anything inflammatory.
“Personally, I don’t make any difference between this game and others. The next game is always the most important game. I live every game just like you live this game. We will compete against a top European club,” said Kompany (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “Hansi was very successful at Bayern. People still talk about him in Munich today. He means a lot to Bayern. Hansi’s ideas are very clear, and hopefully ours are too. Tomorrow we’ll see who wins.”
Still, Kompany knows the recent history — including Bayern Munich’s infamous 8-2 throttling of FC Barcelona back in 2020.
“It was during the COVID, so probably at home [laughs]. I understand that this is part of the drama around this game. But for me it’s all about the 90 minutes tomorrow. There will be a new story of its own. And that’s the only one that interests me at the moment,” Kompany remarked. “Points are more important to me than a good style of play or lots of goals. But it’s a different game tomorrow, against a different opponent. All the positive statistics you can list about us can also be listed for Barça. That’s what makes the game so exciting. The fans shouldn’t come to watch the coaches’ tactics but to marvel at the talent that the players show on the pitch. That’s what makes it really exciting.”
Bayern Munich’s health is a bit of an issue at the moment, but not one that cannot be overcome. The manager provided updates on several injured players, but stopped short of revealing who will be in the starting XI.
“We all spoke to Aleks (Pavlović) – but also to (Hiroki) Itō, to Sacha (Boey), to (Josip) Stanišić. We are always in contact with the injured players, we are not worried because they have the best support to come back,” said Kompany. “I don’t want to say much about the starting eleven. Everyone knows how important Jamal (Musiala) is. It’s not just about this game, but also the next 40. We want to find a balance and not get into a situation where we take too many risks. We’ll see tomorrow whether he will play 90 minutes or come off the bench. Regarding (João) Palhinha, we saw against Stuttgart what he’s capable of. We have a good squad. We trust our boys.”
Could Bayern Munich actually lose to FC Barcelona? What happens if we do? How do the two teams stack up? We discuss those questions and more in the newest episode of our podcast! Listen to it below or on Spotify.
As always, we appreciate all the support!
