Vincent Kompany assures Bayern Munich 'incredibly hungry' to win DFB-Pokal as even opposing coach sees 'desperate' treble desire in Harry Kane & Co

The 4-1 victory over Koln ensured Bayern's incredible winning run continues. Having won all 14 of their matches so far in all competitions, Kompany's men have now broken a European record set by AC Milan in the 1992-93 season.

Despite losing key attacking players such as Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sane and club legend Thomas Muller over the summer, and missing out on primary transfer targets like Nick Woltemade, Bayern have remained competitive on all fronts. Much of the credit is going to manager Kompany, whose tactical acumen and meticulous training methods have instilled discipline, sacrifice, and perseverance within the squad. His man-management has also played a crucial role, helping players such as Kane and Konrad Laimer flourish so far this term.

Bayern’s dominant performances and consistency have reignited talk of a possible treble, reminiscent of their historic 2019-20 campaign.

Speaking ahead the midweek victory, Kompany emphasised his side are taking the cup competition seriously as they target a clean sweep of trophies. "My team is incredibly hungry for the trophy," he said. "It's not just the fans who want the title, it's something we live and breathe."

He repeated that message after the win, saying: "The records come when we approach every game with the mentality of wanting to win. That's the first thing. And the second is quality. The lads are fit and you can see a lot of automatic movements. They're hungry and want more! That's helping us right now."

His words were reiterated by Jonathan Tah, who told reporters: "We're always hungry, we always want to win and we're never satisfied. We're happy today, and tomorrow we'll focus on the next game."

Koln manager Kwasniok acknowledged his counterpart’s words and reaffirmed Bayern’s treble ambitions, saying: "They desperately want the treble."

Koln took a surprise lead in the game after the haf-hour mark when Bayern failed to track a deep run from Ragnar Ache, who met Johannesson’s cross from a set piece and headed it past Urbig. The lead did not last long as Laimer drove up the pitch and found Josip Stanisic, whose shot was saved by the Koln goalkeeper, but the rebound was tapped in by Luis Diaz. 

Kane showed his perseverance and work rate when he dispossessed a Koln defender before swivelling and firing a shot into the net. He got his second of the night in the 64th minute, rising high to head the ball in from a Joshua Kimmich corner. In the 72nd minute, Michael Olise rounded off the score after starting a flowing counterattack from the right. Aleksander Pavlovic found Diaz on the left, who squared the ball for Olise to poke it past Zieler, finishing off the move he had started.

“What I love about this team is that we stay calm. We clawed our way back into the game," Kompany said. “It was a great fight, a real cup match. I'm very happy with the fighting spirit of our lads. We came back from 1-0 down and remained dangerous in the second half. We kept the intensity high. Koln kept clawing themselves back into the game. I'm very happy. We already had great chances in the first half. Koln believed in themselves and fought for the second balls. At times, we didn't execute our set pieces quickly enough. We were always dangerous when we had speed in our possession. It's important for us to use our squad, and we still have players returning. Now, we have three games in six days, so we'll only be regenerating. Leverkusen and PSG will be tough, but we deserve to be confident."

Bayern will look to extend their winning run and strengthen their pursuit of the treble when they face Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga on Saturday. The clash promises to be a crucial test for Kompany’s side, as they aim to maintain momentum and tighten their grip at the top of the table against a strong Leverkusen outfit.