September 15, (THEWILL) – German champions Bayern Munich opened their account for the season’s European elite football competition, the UEFA Champions League, with a composed 3-0 winning start over FC Barcelona at the Camp Nou on Tuesday.
The Bayern pair of Thomas Müller and Robert Lewandowski were on target as the Bavarians easily beat a listless Barcelona side, who could not muster a shot on target for the duration of the contest.
The game was subdued from the start but in a first half with few clear-cut chances, Thomas Müller broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute. It came from a wicked deflection off the back of Eric Garcia before nestling comfortably at the back of Barca’s net.
In the second half, with Barca manager Ronald Koeman pensive about the uninspiring display from his charges, Bayern doubled their lead through a 56th minute rebound shot from their ruthless goal scorer Robert Lewandowski. He was at the right place at the right time to tap home the rebound after Jamal Musiala hit the woodwork.
Not satisfied with one tap-in, Bayern’s Polish forward Lewandowski doubled it for his brace and third goal for the visitors with only five minutes remaining. It was another goal-poacher’s reaction as he was fastest to react when Serge Gnabry’s shot rebounded off the post.
It was another defeat of Barcelona for the German champions and Bayern took the immediate lead of Group E following the goalless draw between Dynamo Kyiv and Benfica, the other teams in the group.
Barca were toothless throughout and did not do enough to threaten Julian Nagelsmann’s side.
The Catalan club therefore finished the first day of fixtures at the bottom of the group.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
