BEVERLY HILLS, October 21, (THEWILL) – UEFA Champions League holders German giants Bayern Munich continued where they left off in their Champions League defence with a stylish 4-0 Group A victory over Atletico Madrid thanks to an remarkable performance by Kingsley Coman.
His display too was in continuation of last season’s games where he not only gave a good account of himself but also scored the decisive goal as Bayern beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 to claim their sixth European crown in Lisbon in August.
Bayern showed the mettle expected from the reigning champions from kick-off. Early on, a spectacular volleyed effort from the effervescent Polish striker Robert Lewandowski, which flashed across goal, set the tone for Hasni Flick’s side.
The Bundesliga giants were rewarded for the work they put into their thorough first-half dominance with a goal that owed much to Joshua Kimmich’s determination than anything else after he chased back and seized on to a wayward Atleti clearance.
The German central defensive midfielder then curled a beautiful high cross to the back post that Coman controlled deftly with his left foot before calmly stroking the ball to beat goalkeeper Jan Oblak with his right.
The fleet-footedness of Coman gave Bayern double the advantage. It came to play again shortly before the break as the French right winger twisted and turned, then slid a low ball into the area, which Goretzka accepted and crisply arrowed into the corner of the net.
The best opportunity for the visitors in the first 45 minutes saw Belgian left midfielder Yannick Carrasco cut the ball back for their Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez. But, the former Barcelona striker could only send it wide as the chance went begging.
In the 47th minute, Joao Felix thought he had pulled a goal back for Atleti, only for VAR to overrule it. The reason was because Suarez had obscured Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer’s view from an offside position.
Corentin Tolisso, the French central defensive midfielder, dealt a fatal blow to any hope Diego Simeone had of his side salvaging something from the game when he struck a superb half-volley into the top corner, leaving Oblak grasping at thin air.
Coman then produced the standout moment of the tie to cap a fine display on the night. The winger picked up the ball on the halfway line, bolted towards goal and danced his way past Atleti’s tired defence in the penalty area before striking a low angled shot past a hapless Oblak.
The gulf in class between the teams was a chasm as Bayern inflicted Atleti’s joint-worst defeat in the competition. Diego Simeone’s teams are normally renowned for their ability to shut teams out but the German side managed 16 shots – nine of which came from inside the penalty area – with 13 crosses to mark their attacking dominance.
Flick’s side remain top favourites to retain their title and that tag looks more than justified on this evidence. Coman provided the standout moment in this as he did in the final victory over PSG leaving the solid impression that he is hungry for more.
If Atletico were to take anything from this game they needed a big performance from Suarez but the experienced Uruguayan did not deliver. He could only manage just one shot and was caught offside when Felix found the net. He was wasteful in possession, with a passing accuracy of 65% from 20 passes, and failed to create a single chance.
In their next matches, Bayern Munich have a home game against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga this Saturday while Atletico will look to bounce back from this thrashing when they host Real Betis in LaLiga on the same day.
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.
