2022-23 UEFA Champions League knockout stage team preview: Bayern Munich
IN BRIEF
Manager: Julian Nagelsmann
Group stage performance: 1st (WWWWWW - vs Barcelona, Inter Milan, Viktoria Plzen)
UEFA Champions League/European Cups: 6 (1973/74, 1974/75, 1975/76, 2000/01, 2012/13, 2019/20)
Last season’s performance: Quarter-finals
SO FAR...
The Bavarians, this time around, are in the middle of a slightly more competitive title race and fight. Some indifferent form in the first-half of the campaign has closed the gap at the top-of-the-table for many sides, including Freiburg and Union Berlin.
That might well be beneficial to Nagelsmann’s side as their focus and attention cannot slip from week to week domestically, meaning there may well be an intensity that is easier to reach for major ties in European competition during the midweek.
They were excellent in the group stages of the tournament, too, winning all six matches and that is just the eleventh time that has ever happened in UEFA Champions League history. It is the second time in three seasons that Bayern have done it and that impressive group stage campaign included four victories over European giants such as Barcelona and Inter Milan.
Since the end of the group stages, they have added a bit of depth and experience to their squad with the January transfer window additions of Yann Sommer from Borussia Monchengladbach and Daley Blind from Ajax.
WHAT ARE BAYERN'S CHANCES IN THE KNOCKOUT STAGE?
The reigning German champions are six-time champions of Europe but might view themselves as slight under achievers with just one win in the last decade and that coming in the COVID-19 affected campaign of the 2019/20 season when the format of the latter stages of the tournament were changed to one legged affairs and held in Portugal.
Bayern were knocked out in the quarter-finals of the competition last season after being beaten by Unai Emery’s Villarreal over two legs in April. That led an anti-climactic campaign with the Bundesliga title having already been wrapped up quite comfortably.
Under the management of Julian Nagelsmann, Bayern Munich have had some fairly bizarre spells of form. They have fluctuated from looking like an impressive amalgamation of Pep Guardiola and Hansi Flick’s best Bavarian sides to then going six without a win in the Bundesliga. Despite that inconsistency, they remain one of the major favourites for this season’s UEFA Champions League title.
A key concern for Bayern Munich will be the lack of Robert Lewandowski. Whilst they only managed one UCL trophy with the Polish striker but they have still not necessarily replaced his output. That has helped a more fluid system with the likes of Sadio Mane, Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala playing in an open front four but the lack of efficiency could be an issue.
ODDS TO WIN THE 2022-23 UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 7/1
Odds used are the best at Oddschecker at the time of writing
