Bayern Munich ended Manchester United’s Women’s Champions League dream after coming from behind to rescue a 2-1 victory at the Allianz Arena and progress from their quarter-final with a 5-3 aggregate win.
Marc Skinner’s side took a deserved lead on the night to draw level in the tie after losing the home leg 3-2 last week, but Bayern’s quality and set-play prowess overpowered them in the second period.
Glodis Viggosdottir cancelled out Melvine Malard’s opener by rising highest to Carolin Simon’s corner in the 80th minute and Linda Dallmann made sure of the result with a thumping volley four minutes later.
Manchester United’s Julia Zigiotti Olme shows her dejection after the defeat
Bayern, who have gone 13 months unbeaten at home, pinned their visitors inside their defensive third for much of the second half but needed two set-plays to break down a resilient Man Utd side. Skinner will be particularly disappointed with how his team conceded after fielding 10 corners before succumbing to a killer 11th.
Glodis Viggosdottir scores Bayern’s first goal against Man Utd
The Frauen-Bundesliga outfit have reached the semi-final stage for the first time in five years, where they will meet the winners of Barcelona vs Real Madrid on Thursday. Barca are leading that tie 6-2 after the first leg.
A step too far for Man Utd
Analysis by Sky Sports’ Laura Hunter:
It is easy to pinpoint the set-piece marking, or lack thereof, as the reason Manchester United lost in Munich but the game had far more nuance than those two moments. The first half was a masterclass in away performance. Malard scored once but could have had three. Generally, Bayern failed to get to grips with the pace of play.
Dallmann competes for the ball with Fridolina Rolfo
Fridolina Rolfo and Hinata Miyazawa had command of the middle third, bouncing passes and linking attacks, while Maya Le Tissier was marshalling a disciplined backline. All the units were working in unison and that unsettled Bayern. Their rhythm from the first leg was absent.
Perhaps Man Utd’s downfall, then, is best characterised by an inability to sustain such intensity for 90 minutes. They dropped off a yard after the break, allowing five shots on Phallon Tullis-Joyce’s goal. The Germans’ second-half dominance is illustrated most strikingly by the touch count in the opposition box: Bayern 33-1 Man Utd.
A step too far on this occasion, but Man Utd should take heart from the fact they finally look like they belong.
Le Tissier ‘fumes’ at set-piece failure
Man Utd captain Maya Le Tissier to Disney+:
“I’m fuming to be fair. Two set-pieces, it seems like every single game we have been knocked out on set-pieces; same as the FA Cup. It’s something we need to work on and it’s frustrating.
“The performance we put in, especially in the first half was something to build on and we can be proud.
“We gave ourselves a hard task after the first leg but we fully believed we could go and win the game. Everyone is just disappointed because we had the confidence to win.
“I don’t want to use it as an excuse. Bayern upped their energy in the second half and we didn’t quite match it. I don’t know why.”
Leave a Reply