Lennart Karl and a first after seven games: what made Bayern Munich’s evening so perfect

Few trips in European football are more thankless than Atletico Madrid away. For almost 30 years, every German team had failed there, more or less miserably. Then, on this Tuesday in November 2026, a Bayern Munich side battered on several fronts claimed a remarkable 2-0 win at the Estadio Metropolitano.

In recent weeks, Bayern Munich had faced one blow after another. Joshua Kimmich's father had died, coach Vincent Kompany had collapsed and a series of injuries had severely depleted the attack. Results had suffered too, with slip-ups against FC Augsburg and Viking Stavanger followed by Saturday's late equaliser in the Bundesliga clash with Borussia Dortmund.

Yet in Madrid, interim head coach Aaron Dank's team played as though they had been in sync for weeks and were riding a winning run. They looked a little like the Bayern Munich of much of last season. 

After heated debate: Lennart Karl answers on the pitch

"It was simply a world-class performance," enthused sporting director Max Eberl afterwards. His team had "done almost everything right from the first minute to the last". Captain Manuel Neuer, back after recovering, said: "That was total dominance from the first minute to the 93rd. Whatever Atletico put up against us, we always had an answer."

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By refusing to get drawn into Atletico-style skirmishes, Bayern gave the often-frenzied Metropolitano crowd little to feed on. Even coach Diego Simeone repeatedly prowling from his coaching area on to the pitch in his customary emotional fashion, at times making it seem as though Atletico had 12 men, failed to unsettle them. Clear chances, let alone goals, remained scarce for a long time despite Bayern's dominance from the start.

The breakthrough finally came in the 54th minute through Lennart Karl. Karl, of all people, had attracted more discussion than any other Bayern Munich player in recent weeks: too much social media, too little humility and so on. Honorary president Uli Hoeneß had announced a "serious conversation" with the 18-year-old. Karl answered on the pitch.

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Bayern Munich can do it without Kane and Olise at their best

In the 74th minute, right-back Konrad Laimer made it 2-0. Neither of Bayern's two superstars, Harry Kane and Michael Olise, scored. They had also gone without a goal in the 2-2 draw against Dortmund, when Laimer and Dayot Upamecano had scored.

Kane has now gone three games without a goal. After wasting chances against BVB, the world footballer of the year failed to score from five shots in Madrid, though he set up Laimer's goal for 2-0. Olise had finished the Dortmund game carrying a knock and lacked his usual sharpness in Madrid. The Frenchman worked hard and saw plenty of the ball, but repeatedly got caught when dribbling, turned back or went to ground.

Despite those displays, Kane and Olise's outstanding quality and consistency over recent months offer reason to trust that they will soon rediscover their form. Bayern Munich beat top opponents without their two biggest stars at their best. They did it without Luis Diaz, Jamal Musiala, Serge Gnabry and Ismael Saibari too.

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Bayern Munich keep a clean sheet for the first time in eight games

A clean sheet gave Bayern another boost after they had conceded at least one goal in each of their previous seven games. Defensive leader Dayot Upamecano did most to secure it. He was Munich's best player at the Metropolitano. 

Alongside him, Jonathan Tah, who had been struggling recently, recovered from a difficult start and put himself back in contention in his battle with Min-Jae Kim. Full-backs Laimer and Josip Stanisic attacked with intent without neglecting their defensive duties. On his return, goalkeeper Manuel Neuer had virtually nothing to do.

Victory moved Bayern Munich up to eighth in the table, at least for now, enough for direct entry into the round of 16. After all their setbacks in recent weeks, they reinforced their status as one of the leading favourites for the Champions League title. If Bayern Munich return to the Metropolitano for the final on 5 June 2027, they may look back on this win as the emotional turning point of their season.

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