Joshua Kimmich has stepped into the void left by Bayern Munich’s former captain and is once again mentioning Juve

Joshua Kimmich was asked afterwards whether this had been the most emotional Champions League night since he joined FC Bayern in 2015. The 31-year-old midfield maestro paused for a moment. Only one comparable match came to mind: the 2016 round-of-16 second leg against Juventus, when Munich, after falling 2-0 behind early on, ultimately prevailed 4-2 in extra time. “Otherwise, I’ve had plenty of emotional evenings that went the other way,” said Kimmich. “That’s why I’m really glad we pulled it off.” 

Kimmich was understandably delighted with the result and the mentality shown against Real Madrid. Yet, as the only member of the Munich squad to speak up, he was also refreshingly candid in his criticism of the performance. “Generally speaking, it wasn’t a high-quality match,” Kimmich concluded. “If you look at the performance, it wasn’t one of our better games. There’s plenty of room for improvement.”

Bayern Munich appeared more erratic, less dominant and less threatening than in the first leg. Their four forwards remained largely contained, thanks in part to adjustments by Real coach Alvaro Arbeloa. Left-back Ferland Mendy, surprisingly preferred to Alvaro Carreras, handled Michael Olise more effectively than his counterpart had in the first leg. So it came as a mild surprise when UEFA named Olise man of the match.

In Madrid, both the result and the xG numbers had favoured Bayern (2.9–2.2); at the Bernabéu, the xG was 2.3–2.1 in Real’s favour. In short, Bayern scored two more goals than expected—yet also conceded one extra, with captain Manuel Neuer partly to blame. Having been outstanding just seven days earlier, the captain was at fault for the opening goal with a costly blunder and also contributed to the second Madrid strike. The 2–3 finish stemmed from a chain of errors in which the otherwise impressive Dayot Upamecano was also complicit.

“It’s very good to progress with two wins against Real and still feel that we can improve,” said Kimmich, whose unexpected critique briefly recalled Matthias Sammer. 

The former Bayern Munich sporting director—now a BVB advisor—is famous for raining on parades. After four trophy-laden years that yielded one Champions League crown and three semi-final berths, Sammer departed Bayern in 2016. Shortly before that, on the back of the dramatic victory over Juve mentioned by Kimmich, the Munich side suffered an equally dramatic semi-final defeat to Atlético Madrid. This year’s final in Budapest could reunite the rivals, but first up in the last four is Paris Saint-Germain.

Kimmich describes PSG as “the team in the best form” in Europe, and chairman Jan Christian Dreesen concurs, labelling the reigning champions the favourites. Bayern did prevail 2-1 in Paris during the group stage in November. After an outstanding first half, the Bavarians—reduced to ten men following Díaz’s dismissal—held on for the win in a defensive battle.

Incidentally, Kimmich also recalled the clash with Juventus ten years ago, which clearly left a lasting impression—though not, as on this occasion, the dramatic second leg. When asked whether the first half against PSG had been the best of his time at FC Bayern, Kimmich replied, “Yes.” The only rival: the opening 45 minutes of the 2016 Juve first leg. Against PSG, Bayern will need both the dominant play of that Juve first leg and the grit shown in the second.