Manchester City produced a gutsy performance to fight back from 2-0 down and earn a draw away to Bayern Munich. A tough first half saw José Barcala’s side take the lead through Giulia Gwinn before a Kerstin Casparij own goal doubled their lead. But goals from Beth Mead and Carlotta Wamser saw the visitors take home a hard-earned point.
It was always going to be a challenging start for the English champions against a Bayern team who have historically thrived in the league phase of this competition. Barcala’s side came into this encounter unbeaten in their last 15 group-stage matches and having made a run to the semi-finals last season that, according to Gwinn, had left them “even hungrier and eager for more”. Not only that but the German outfit have kicked off the defence of their Frauen-Bundesliga title in stunning fashion, with five wins from five leaving them two points clear at the top of the table.
Andrée Jeglertz’s side themselves had arrived in Germany full of confidence after an equally impressive start to their domestic campaign. Their 4-2 win over Liverpool on Friday night had been a sign of their mettle, finding a way to win despite not being at their best. European football, however, presents a different test altogether and they came into the competition with plenty of unknowns. How would they measure up against seasoned participants after a year out of the competition? Could their relatively small squad juggle the load of European football and domestic challenges despite the absence of the likes of Vivianne Miedema and Rebecca Knaak through injury?
Reality hit in a first half that saw a refreshed Bayern take control of proceedings. Barcala had been able to make five changes to his starting XI, having completely rested Klara Bühl and Gwinn against Köln on Saturday, and they looked full of energy.
Ballon d’Or nominee Bühl immediately stretched every sinew of City’s fragile-looking defence with her pace and guile. The 25-year-old was at the heart of everything Bayern created early on, firing a volley wide before setting up the equally prolific Pernille Harder for a half chance.
It did not come as a surprise, therefore, that the hosts broke the deadlock with just 11 minutes on the clock. It was a move that cut through the heart of Manchester City as Linda Dallmann broke through central midfield to send Gwinn on her way down the right. The full-back saw the pitch open up in front of her, dispatching a cool finish past Ayaka Yamashita in the City goal.
It was moment that saw the 4,291-strong crowd raise the decibel level, energised by the domination of their team and, perhaps also, the Oktoberfest celebrations. This was Bayern’s first outing at Sportpark Unterhaching and the raucous crowd seemed to settle in straight away at their new home.
The pressure on City continued as the game progressed. Struggling to find any space in possession, they were guilty of playing into Bayern’s hands, channelling their play centrally rather than allowing Lauren Hemp and Aoba Fujino to try to exploit the width. Things got worse when an unwitting Casparij diverted a dangerous Harder cross into her own net to double the score.
This City side are made of stern stuff, however, and Jeglertz’s side were handed a lifeline just before the break, albeit in controversial fashion. As a blue smoke flare blazed on the pitch, the referee allowed play to continue as Casparij burst forward down the right. Her ball in eventually fell to a free Mead to tap home.
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The visitors’ comeback continued in the second half as the game ebbed and flowed in a much more even affair. They should have had an equaliser when Fujino was felled in the box by Ena Mahmutovic only for the goalkeeper to step up to save the subsequent spot kick from Khadija Shaw.
Jeglertz rang the changes with Mary Fowler replacing a struggling Shaw and Laura Blindkilde Brown coming into central midfield. Despite the hosts still looking potent going forward, City could sense that the tide was shifting and found an equaliser with four minutes to play. Wamser, signed from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, arrived on the edge of the box to rifle home a finish on her return to Germany.
The substitute Edna Imade had two big chances to win it for the hosts late on but the visitors held strong to head back home with a valuable point. With one of their most difficult games out of the way, they face Real Madrid next week in Manchester with a chance of making another statement on the European stage.
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