Slowly they could hardly hide that they were running out of strength. There was no display that hovered over the heads of the FC Bayern players and revealed the current charge level of their batteries. But the clues piled up in the form of bad passes and a defensive that formed less quickly to ward off counterattacks from Paris Saint-Germain: battery rather half empty. When 104 minutes had passed in this Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday, Lineth Beerensteyn felt the lack of energy elsewhere. A cramp in the calf, shortly afterwards it was clear that I couldn’t go any further.
And now the dilemma of the Munich team became clear, which almost certainly played a large part in the fact that they missed out on reaching the semi-finals after that 2-2 (1-1, 2-1) and 1-2 defeat in the first leg. Who should Jens Scheuer replace? Even before the first leg in the Allianz Arena, the coach had reported on his problem of repeatedly being faced with the difficult decision of who to field. This sometimes gives him sleepless nights. This time he had a completely different problem.
Scheuer could choose between Juliane Schmid, Cecilía Rúnarsdóttir, 18-year-old Julia Landenberger and 16-year-old Laura Marie Gloning. Schmid and Rúnarsdóttir were out of the question as goalkeepers. So he had exactly two options – in a game in the most important international club competition.
FC Bayern’s power bank was so empty because seven players had been infected with the corona virus in the previous few days, Viviane Asseyi was missing with a yellow ban – there were also long-term injuries. Scheuer chose Landenberger, usually in the second-team squad, who was a pretty good swimmer given the cold water she was thrown into. But the Parisians had the kind of wild card that the guests lacked.
“I think we showed in both games that we are the better collective,” said Bayern coach Jens Scheuer
It was not least due to goalkeeper Janina Leitzig’s quick reactions that PSG were not able to celebrate beforehand on various occasions. But Ramona Bachmann, who came on as a substitute in the 93rd minute, couldn’t be brought under control by the defensive end, and in the 112th minute Leitzig couldn’t get the Swiss player’s powerful, low shot. The quarterfinals were decided. “The disappointment is huge,” said Scheuer: “I think we showed in both games that we are the better collective. We played better football.” And: “I’m incredibly proud of my team given the conditions under which we competed, which I still find a bit questionable.”
Her shot was to be decisive that evening: Ramona Bachmann (centre) celebrated her goal to make it 2-2 for Paris in the 112th minute.
(Photo: Thomas Samson/AFP)
After 2019 and 2021, it would have been the third entry among the four best international clubs for the Bayern soccer players. And like that stat, the style of play was a testament to the strength of this team. The Munich women had not been intimidated by the crowd of 27,262 spectators – including the male PSG professionals Kylian Mbappé, Juan Bernat and impressively persistently loud Ultras – in the Prinzenpark and dominated in the regular season.
They kept putting the French champions under pressure, repelling counterattacks and bold attacks. It was remarkable how much verve each threw themselves into the encounter. But as in the first leg, there was a lack of precision in the shots and the others ultimately benefited from this lack of efficiency. Bayern’s Saki Kumagai answered Sandy Baltimore’s 1-0 lead (17th minute) immediately (19th minute). In the 55th minute, Klara Bühl strengthened her belief in victory with her shot deflected by Lea Schüller to make it 2-1, but later had to admit: “We had our chances. If we had taken them, we could have won the game. “
Not only coach Scheuer, but also players repeatedly emphasize that the most important title of the season for them is the championship. Success in the Champions League and especially a victory in the premier class should be on everyone’s wish list. And so the disappointment was enormous. Perhaps it was comforting that afterwards there was less fuss about this defeat than would otherwise have been the case. Another club made the headlines before, during and beyond this evening.
91,553 spectators at the Camp Nou – more than ever at a women’s football game
FC Barcelona’s footballers not only reached the semi-finals against Real Madrid 5-2 (first leg: 3-1) in the early evening – they also set a world record. 91,553 spectators came to the Camp Nou, the largest football stadium in Europe. More than ever at a women’s soccer game. The previous record was 90,185 spectators who watched the 1999 World Cup final between the USA and China. “It was a day of celebration for FC Barcelona fans and for women’s football in general,” wrote the Spanish sports daily mark.
Treble winners and world record holders: The FC Barcelona players around captain Alexia Putellas (left) experienced a very special evening at the Camp Nou on Wednesday.
(Photo: Albert Gea/Reuters)
Again and again the spectators sang the famous club anthem “El Cant del Barça” and flipped after the goals of María León (8th), Aitana Bonmatí (52nd), Claudia Pina (55th), world footballer Alexia Putellas (62nd) and Caroline Graham Hansen (70th) outright, the support was enormous. “I can hardly hold back my tears, that’s crazy,” said Graham Hansen, clearly emotional: “It’s something I didn’t even dare to dream of.”
Long after the final whistle, thousands remained in the arena. The players of the defending champions and treble winners grabbed flags and scarves and ran across the pitch with them. How much they were touched by this encouragement, even overwhelmed, was obvious to everyone. In turn, they showed their appreciation by partying extensively in front of the stands and joining in the chants of the fans, before Putellas, among others, even set the rhythm on the drums of the supporters. “What happened today,” said the 28-year-old, “is undoubtedly historic.”