Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany sees the second leg of the Champions League Round of 16 as a “new day, new match, new beginning.” The 3-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg is now behind him, and his focus is solely on securing a win at the opponent’s ground to progress to the quarter-finals.
Bayern made an impressive start in the European competition, dominating the first leg with a 3-0 win at home against their Bundesliga rivals. However, the second leg at Leverkusen’s stadium poses a different challenge that could be much tougher.
In recent years, Bayern struggled against Leverkusen. Heading into the most recent match, they had lost three of their last six encounters with Xabi Alonso’s side, with the other three ending in draws.
Breaking that losing streak with a solid victory in the first leg has boosted their hopes of reaching the quarter-finals, but Kompany is not letting his team relax. He emphasized that Bayern will approach the match with the same goal in mind: victory.
“You can’t go into a match thinking about a 3-0 lead,” Kompany said. “Once the game starts, winning is the only thing that matters.”
To secure victory, Kompany knows Bayern must give their best performance. “Tomorrow’s match is extremely important,” he added.
Despite the strong performance against Leverkusen, Bayern faced a setback in the Bundesliga, losing to bottom-tier Bochum. Leverkusen also suffered a defeat after their loss to Bayern, this time against Werder Bremen.
