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The Allianz Arena will always hold cherished memories for Chelsea but when they pick through the wreckage of their first night back in the Champions League there will be plenty of moments that they would probably rather not have to think about again.
Back at the ground where they became European champions for the first time, there was the brief prospect of the team in blue pulling off another unlikely heist in Bavaria. Yet while there was defiance after Bayern Munich went 2-0 up, Cole Palmer halving the deficit, the problems at the other end were too great for Chelsea to overcome.
There were too many mistakes from Enzo Maresca’s young side exposing their inexperience after a two-year absence from this competition, and ultimately that was always likely to prove fatal given that Bayern had Harry Kane ready to remind Premier League opposition of his ruthlessness in front of goal.
Even Palmer could not steal centre stage from Kane. The England captain was exceptional, punishing errors from Malo Gusto and Moisés Caicedo to take his tally in the Champions League to 42 goals in 58 appearances. The numbers are ridiculous. Kane already has 11 goals for club and country this season and while Bayern were not wholly convincing the brilliance of their No 9 ensured they began the league phase with a comfortable win.
Maresca’s decision to use the formula that flummoxed Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup final made sense. The deployment of Reece James alongside Caicedo added ballast in midfield, freeing Enzo Fernández to push forward, and the hope for Chelsea was that Palmer could repeat his heroics against PSG from his floating role on the right.
Chelsea did not park the bus. They had poise in possession and a plan to probe at Bayern’s high line. Gusto was an attacking outlet from right-back and the opening goal beckoned when Fernández burst on to a pass from Palmer, only for Konrad Laimer to make a crucial intervention.
Bayern had another escape when Marc Cucurella headed wide. There was space to exploit in the wide areas. Yet Bayern brought their own threats. Kane sent a header narrowly over, Serge Gnabry schemed in the pockets and there was danger whenever the ball reached Michael Olise on the right.
Chelsea needed no introduction to Olise given that they twice tried to sign him from Crystal Palace. Knowing about the winger’s threat is not the same as knowing how to combat it, though. The marking had to be tighter when Joshua Kimmich played a free-kick out to Olise in the 20th minute. Instead João Pedro was left on his own against the Frenchman, who breezed round the outside before firing in a cross that Trevoh Chalobah turned into his own net under pressure from Dayot Upamecano.
Chelsea lost focus. They were in trouble after a mix up on the left. Caicedo had given away the free-kick in the buildup to the opener and he was soon at fault again, clambering all over Kane as the England captain looked to turn in the area.
It seemed the contest was over when Kane made it 2-0 by beating Robert Sánchez with a cool penalty. Chelsea, though, have tasted adversity in this stadium before. The response came from Caicedo winning possession off Olise. Suddenly, with Jonathan Tah colliding with João Pedro on halfway, Palmer was surging through the middle . A one-two with Gusto followed, leaving Palmer to mark his 100th appearance for Chelsea and his first for the club in this competition by clipping a lovely finish into Manuel Neuer’s net.
It had been a weird half, with moments of quality followed by plenty of bitty play. Maresca was booked for complaining about Tah’s challenge on João Pedro before Palmer’s goal. Gusto almost equalised before Laimer went close at the other end. The big takeaway: both teams were a mess at the back.
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Vincent Kompany responded by replacing Tah with Kim Min-jae at half-time. There was another defensive alteration when Josip Stanisic limped off. Sacha Boey came on at right-back and Laimer moved to the left.
There was a fleeting sense of Chelsea taking control. Caicedo and James looked increasingly muscular in midfield. Palmer saw more of the ball, embarrassing Laimer with one beautiful nutmeg. Yet Bayern remained menacing. Luis Díaz was lively on the left and there were two huge let-offs for Chelsea before the hour, Sánchez making fine saves to stop Kane and Olise from making it 3-1.
Olise ought to have been furious with himself for finishing so casually. No matter. With Kimmich and Aleksandar Pavlovic restoring calm in midfield Bayern raised the tempo again and Chelsea cracked when Gusto did the worst thing a defender can do: give the ball to Kane in your own area.
This time there was no reprieve. The finish was pure Kane: composed, impossibly smooth, utterly deadly. Yet Chelsea’s wounds were self-inflicted. Gusto lay on the turf, aghast with himself. It was a long way back now.
Bayern had too much nous. Chelsea faded. This was not a disastrous performance but they will have to be sharper in defence when they host Benfica in their next game.
