Bayern Munich continues their struggles against Spanish teams in the Champions League as they fell 2-1 at home to defending champions Real Madrid at home in the first leg of their semifinal tie. The Germans have been eliminated in the semifinals or quarterfinals in four straight years by Spanish teams, including twice by Real Madrid, who didn’t play their best. However, the Spanish giants have a solid advantage to take home to Madrid on Tuesday, May 1st.
What To Know About Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich started the game off strong and scored the first goal after 28 minutes through Joshua Kimmich, and honestly, they were probably the better team throughout the game. However, Franck Ribery couldn’t finish a pair of chances in the second half, and Thomas Muller and Robert Lewandowski also couldn’t find the back of the net. Bayern Munich also struggled with health as Arjen Robben and Jerome Boateng had to be substituted in the first half with groin and hamstring injuries, respectively, and neither will likely be involved in the second leg. Also, Javi Martinez suffered a concussion and he is also an injury concern for the second leg. But Bayern Munich will look at this game as a missed opportunity and they have a lot to do as they head to Madrid.
What To Know About Real Madrid
Marcelo scored just before halftime to give Real Madrid a lifeline, and then Marco Asensio netted the winner in the 57th minute after coming on for Isco at halftime. Real Madrid didn’t get off to a good start as they played a 4-1-4-1 formation, which left Casemiro battling by himself in front of the defense and Cristiano Ronaldo completely isolated up front; it was actually the first time in a staggering 14 games over all competitions in which Ronaldo failed to score. Real Madrid looked much better after Dani Carvajal had to be taken off because of a thigh injury and he was replaced by Karim Benzema, which forced Zinedine Zidane to go to a 4-4-2. However, Real Madrid can’t afford to start off as slowly as they did in the second leg and Zidane has to get his team into a formation that allows them to put Bayern Munich on the back foot early on.
Outlook
Real Madrid comes into this match favored at home at 2.00, while Bayern Munich are rated at 3.50 and a draw comes in at 3.80. Real Madrid have now won their last six meetings with Bayern Munich in the Champions League and the Germans haven’t won at Real Madrid since May 2001, a span of seven trips. Bayern Munich doesn’t have to do anything fancy in the second leg and Real Madrid’s defense is capable of being caught out. If they can finish their chances and perhaps get an early goal, they can make this a contest. However, Real Madrid have been the kings of this competition with three wins in the last four seasons and they tend to get up for these kinds of games, so look for the champions to get back to the final.
Champions League Betting Pick: Real Draw
Looking for the latest odds on Champions League matches? Visit Play Shangri La to get all of the odds, including the betting lines to win it all.
