In the Champions League semi-final second leg in Barcelona, FC Bayern will also be playing against the greatest humiliation in the club’s recent history.
The stage will be different, of course. Around 4,400 spectators gathered at the Estadi Johan Cruyff in early October to witness the 1-7 debacle against FC Barcelona. Roughly seven months later, up to 60,000 could be present at the legendary Camp Nou. However, for FC Bayern’s triple-chasing women, the atmosphere in the Champions League semi-final second leg will only serve as an additional incentive to finally put the humiliation from the group stage behind them.
«This game belongs to the past,» emphasized coach Jose Barcala after the first leg in the Allianz Arena. «We have learned from it and have developed further in recent months.» The Bayern players demonstrated this in their hard-fought 1-1 draw last Saturday. They need to, and indeed must, show it once again in the second leg on Sunday (4:30 PM CET/ZDF and Disney+). Only then can the dream of the club’s first European Cup final become a reality.
The Munich team has «nothing to lose,» stated national player Giulia Gwinn. «We are going there knowing exactly what it means to take this final step to the final.» Bayern has failed in the semi-finals twice before; on their third attempt, they aim to finally succeed. Even against this Barcelona side, packed with world stars and aiming for their sixth consecutive final appearance, Bayern remains unfazed.
FC Bayern to be without Jose Barcala and Franziska Kett against Barcelona
The Spanish team might «come angry» after the missed victory in Munich, Gwinn confidently announced. «We are coming very motivated, we are coming with great anticipation.» Director Bianca Rech was pleased that they had created «very good conditions» in Munich for the reunion in Barcelona. Nevertheless, Bayern faces a «mammoth task.» Not only because they are playing against the «best team in the world,» but also due to the painful memories of October.
Both coach Barcala and national player Franziska Kett, who was Bayern’s best player and scorer in the first leg, will be suspended. Kett, in particular, will be «greatly missed» by the team after her much-discussed red card for pulling a ponytail, Rech recently said on MagentaSport. The 21-year-old had «an outstanding game» at the Allianz Arena, «truly surpassed herself. That hurts us.» But, Rech stressed with full confidence, «the team will overcome it.»
They have to. After all, with the championship already secured and reaching the cup final, they now have «the chance to achieve something truly great» in Barcelona, said Carolin Simon, who is a potential replacement for Kett at left-back, speaking to Sport1. She assured, «We will give everything for it, and then we will see what comes out of it.»
The main thing is not another 1-7.
English Translation:
In the Champions League semi-final second leg in Barcelona, FC Bayern will also be playing against the greatest humiliation in the club’s recent history.
The stage will be different, of course. Around 4,400 spectators gathered at the Estadi Johan Cruyff in early October to witness the 1-7 debacle against FC Barcelona. Roughly seven months later, up to 60,000 could be present at the legendary Camp Nou. However, for FC Bayern’s triple-chasing women, the atmosphere in the Champions League semi-final second leg will only serve as an additional incentive to finally put the humiliation from the group stage behind them.
«This game belongs to the past,» emphasized coach Jose Barcala after the first leg in the Allianz Arena. «We have learned from it and have developed further in recent months.» The Bayern players demonstrated this in their hard-fought 1-1 draw last Saturday. They need to, and indeed must, show it once again in the second leg on Sunday (4:30 PM CET/ZDF and Disney+). Only then can the dream of the club’s first European Cup final become a reality.
The Munich team has «nothing to lose,» stated national player Giulia Gwinn. «We are going there knowing exactly what it means to take this final step to the final.» Bayern has failed in the semi-finals twice before; on their third attempt, they aim to finally succeed. Even against this Barcelona side, packed with world stars and aiming for their sixth consecutive final appearance, Bayern remains unfazed.
FC Bayern to be without Jose Barcala and Franziska Kett against Barcelona
The Spanish team might «come angry» after the missed victory in Munich, Gwinn confidently announced. «We are coming very motivated, we are coming with great anticipation.» Director Bianca Rech was pleased that they had created «very good conditions» in Munich for the reunion in Barcelona. Nevertheless, Bayern faces a «mammoth task.» Not only because they are playing against the «best team in the world,» but also due to the painful memories of October.
Both coach Barcala and national player Franziska Kett, who was Bayern’s best player and scorer in the first leg, will be suspended. Kett, in particular, will be «greatly missed» by the team after her much-discussed red card for pulling a ponytail, Rech recently said on MagentaSport. The 21-year-old had «an outstanding game» at the Allianz Arena, «truly surpassed herself. That hurts us.» But, Rech stressed with full confidence, «the team will overcome it.»
They have to. After all, with the championship already secured and reaching the cup final, they now have «the chance to achieve something truly great» in Barcelona, said Carolin Simon, who is a potential replacement for Kett at left-back, speaking to Sport1. She assured, «We will give everything for it, and then we will see what comes out of it.»
The main thing is not another 1-7.