Kim Min-jae and Bayern Munich dramatically overcame the crisis that almost plunged into hell.
Bayern drew 1-1 in the second round of the UEFA Champions League (UCL) round of 16 playoff against Celtic at 5 a.m. on the 19th (Korea time) at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany. Bayern, which secured a 2-1 victory in the first round, secured a ticket to the round of 16 with a 3-2 aggregate score.
In the extra time of the second half, Alfonso Davis scored a theater goal to draw a dramatic 1-1 draw. Bayern, which won 2-1 in the first round at Celtic Park in Glasgow, Scotland on the 13th, won the match with a combined score of 3-2 and managed to advance to the round of 16.
Bayern played in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Harry Kane has been deployed to the front line. Serge Gnabry, Jamal Musiala and Michael Olise were in the second line. The midfield consisted of Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka. Rafael Geheiro, Kim Min-jae, Dayo Upamecano and Josip Stanisic made four backs. Manuel Neuer defended the goal.
Celtic prepared for a 4-3-3 formation. Yang Hyun-joon, who has been showing a tremendous rise by scoring one goal and four assists in the past three games, started off the bench unfortunately.
In the third minute of the first half, Olise received Kimihi's conversion pass and entered the penalty box. Gnabry delivered an exquisite cross to the back of the net, but Gnabry was unable to finish due to defensive checks.
Bayern faced a serious crisis in the 7th minute of the first half when Olise lost the ball at the half-line. Callum McGregor had a decisive chance, but the shot headed over the net. In the 16th minute of the first half, a more serious loss crisis came. Bayern's defense completely collapsed as Jota momentarily penetrated into the back space. Nicholas Quinn has a no-mark chance. It was a shot that Neuer couldn't block, but Geheiro cleared in front of the goal line.
Bayern's defense didn't come to its senses early in the game. In the 18th minute of the first half, Upamecano tried to send a long pass to Kim Min-jae, but it was ridiculously inaccurate. Quinn blocked it and sent Daizen Maeda a shot opportunity. Maeda's hasty shot was also inaccurate.
Bayern tried to change the mood. Kane's shot, which received Musiala's penetration pass in the 22nd minute of the first half, was blocked by the goalkeeper. In the 37th minute of the first half, Kimihi had a chance to shoot in the attack that began with Goretzka, but the shot headed to the side of the net. Bayern continued to play frustratingly as Gnabry failed to show his presence at all.
Bayern's best chance came from the right in the 44th minute of the first half. Stanisic correctly delivered a low, fast cross to Kane after the overlap. Kane's nonstop shot hit the post.
At the start of the second half, Kane, who was not 100% in condition before the game, went out and Kingsley Comang was put in. In the second minute of the second half, Goretzka's one-on-one opportunity came in Bayern's counterattack. But again, he was blocked by Kasper Schmeichel. Bayern kept knocking on Celtic's post but were not creating a really threatening chance.
Eventually, an accident occurred. In the 18th minute of the second half, Celtic attempted a counterattack. It was good until Stanisic figured out the path in advance and blocked it. However, the pass was not toward Kim Min-jae, nor was it toward Geheiro. Maeda, who saw this through, poked it at the running queen. Kim Min-jae ran and attempted a sliding tackle, but failed to cut it properly, and Quinn scored the first goal.
It was clearly Kim Min-jae's mistake. Kim Min-jae's tackle attempt touched the ball, but it was not handled in a way that was clearly cleared, so ownership was handed over to Quinn. Kim Min-jae seems to have wanted to regain ownership of the ball through tackles, but it was such an urgent situation that it needed to be handled cleaner.
Bayern, which became urgent, made changes to both the left in the 19th minute of the second half when Alfonso Davis and Leroy Sane were put in. Soon after, Yang Hyun-joon was also put in as a substitute, resulting in the Korean Derby. In the 25th minute of the second half, even Maeda's header came out from Celtic's counterattack, but Neuer headed straight ahead.
In the 28th minute of the second half, Goretzka missed another decisive opportunity. Kimihi momentarily stabbed Koretska well into the penalty box, but Koretska's diving header turned away from the goal. After Sane's momentary breakthrough in the 31st minute of the second half, he also failed to aim properly at the post. Kimihi's surprise mid-range shot was deflected in the 33rd minute of the second half, but Schmeichel also saved it.
If we keep going like this, we have to play extra time. Bayern's attack was so frustrating, and Celtic's counterattack continued to be sharp, so it was not strange no matter what happened to the extension. Bayern's savior came 50 seconds before the end of the game.
Olise's sharp cross was delivered to the gate. Koretzka tried a decisive header, but Schmeichel hit it by hand. The shooting was so strong that he couldn't handle it properly, and Alfonso pushed the second ball. As the game ended, Bayern dramatically brought a ticket to the round of 16.
After the game, local public sentiment has been strongly criticized for Kim Min-jae. This is because Kim Min-jae is showing good performance overall this season, but big mistakes have not disappeared. Football statistics media Footmob gave Kim Min-jae the lowest rating, and German local media also criticized Kim Min-jae.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
