The umpteenth assault of the petromillionaire PSG to the Champions League tomorrow comes up against a new obstacle of maximum difficulty. Bayern, his rival on this occasion, is that giant always in shape that never loses ambition or luster. Thus, the champion of France, a team built with a checkbook that bites the dust every time it tries like the bad guy in a movie, entrusts itself to Kylian Mbappé and Leo Messi to overcome the goal conceded in Paris at the Allianz Arena . These two are what sustains a team that has spent more than anyone could conceive to earn so little.
The dependence on Mbappé is perhaps greater than that of the Argentine at this point. Without the Frenchman on the field in the first leg, Bayern dominated the French for an hour. Only when he jumped onto the pitch did things change. Mbappé was close to equalizing and filled his fans with hope. Without Neymar in the team, injured for the remainder of the season due to a sprained ankle with ligament damage, the Frenchman's influence will be much greater.
Neymar's loss will force coach Cristophe Galtier to form a more balanced team. Often the presence of the offensive trident has caused problems to find optimal defensive stability, something necessary on a visit to the Allianz Arena. “Ney has 17 goals and 11 assists this season. When I read that he is much better than not playing, no! ”, Assured the coach. “Is the team better balanced? Yes, because we have one more midfielder. But having Ney in the team is one more asset to score goals, ”he summarized.
Bayern comes into the duel fully launched. In the Bundesliga he maintains a power struggle with Borussia Dortmund and Julian Nagelsmann has not been able to give anyone rest. But with the cruising pace reached, this team is one of the most dangerous on the continent. An empire commanded by the youth of Musiala and the seniority of Muller, fireproof up to now.
This is the fourth time that both teams have met in Europe since the 2017-18 season. That course they coincided in the group stage and both won in their own field. The next time was the 2020 final played in Lisbon due to the pandemic. There, a goal from Coman gave the Bavarians the title. A year later they met in the quarterfinals and the French took revenge for double the value of away goals in a very close tie in which they finished 3-3.
