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Manchester City produced a gutsy performance to fight back and earn a valuable 2-2 draw away at Bayern Munich on their return to the Champions League. José Barcala’s side took the lead through Giulia Gwinn and an unfortunate Kerstin Casparij own goal but Beth Mead and Carlotta Wamser earned the visitors a hard-earned point.
City’s head coach, Andrée Jeglertz, was pleased with the resolve of his side after a difficult first half. “It [a comeback] has happened before because we know the quality is there,” he said. “The mentality of winning and the belief is there. It shows something about this group again.
“There were definitely two phases of this game. In the first half, Bayern were very good. I think we were a bit slow on the ball … It was almost like we were surprised by the tempo. I know we weren’t but it looked like that. At the end of the first half, we got a little bit back. The trust and the belief at half-time was good so I felt that this is still possible.”
It was always going to be a challenging start for the English champions against a Bayern team who have historically thrived in the league phase of this competition. They came into this unbeaten in their last 15 home group-stage matches and on the back of a semi-final run last season that, according to Gwinn, had left them “even hungrier and eager for more”. Not only that but the German team have kicked off the defence of their Frauen-Bundesliga title in stunning fashion with five wins from five.
City also arrived in Germany full of confidence after an equally impressive start to the season. Their 4-2 win over Liverpool on Friday had been a further sign of their mettle, finding a way to win despite not being at their best.
European football, however, presents a different test altogether and they came into this game with plenty of unknowns. How would they measure up after a year out of the competition? Could their injury-hit squad juggle the load of European football and domestic challenges?
Reality hit in a first half during which a refreshed Bayern took control of proceedings. Barcala had been able to make five changes to his starting XI, having completely rested Klara Bühl and Gwinn against Köln on Saturday, and they looked full of energy.
Bühl immediately stretched every sinew of City’s fragile-looking defence with her pace and guile. The 25-year-old was at the heart of everything Bayern created early on, firing a volley wide before setting up the equally prolific Pernille Harder for a half chance.
It did not come as a surprise, therefore, that the hosts broke the deadlock with 11 minutes on the clock. It was a move that cut through the heart of Manchester City as Linda Dallmann broke clear to send Gwinn on her way. The full-back saw the pitch open up in front of her, dispatching a cool finish past Ayaka Yamashita in the City goal.
It was moment when the 4,291-strong crowd raised the decibel level, buoyed by their team’s domination and, perhaps also, the Oktoberfest celebrations. This was Bayern’s first outing at Sportpark Unterhaching and the raucous crowd seemed to settle in straight away at their new home.
The pressure on City continued. Struggling to find space in possession, they were guilty of playing into Bayern’s hands, channelling their attack centrally rather than trying to exploit the wide areas. Things got worse when an unwitting Casparij diverted a dangerous Harder cross into her own net to double the score.
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This City side are made of stern stuff, however, and Jeglertz’s players were handed a lifeline just before the break, albeit in controversial fashion. As a blue smoke flare blazed on the pitch, the referee allowed play to continue while Casparij burst forward. Her cross was met by Khadija Shaw, whose shot was deflected into the path of Mead, who tapped home.
The second half was a much more even affair as the pendulum of momentum swung between the teams. City should have had an equaliser when Aoba Fujino was brought down by Ena Mahmutovic only for the goalkeeper to step up and save Shaw’s penalty.
Despite the hosts still looking potent going forward, City could sense that the tide was shifting and found an equaliser with four minutes to play. Wamser, signed from Bayer Leverkusen this summer, arrived unmarked on the edge of the box to rifle home a finish on her return to Germany.
The substitute Edna Imade had two big chances to win it for Bayern late on but the visitors held strong. With one of their most difficult games out of the way, they face Real Madrid next week in Manchester with a chance of making another statement on the European stage.
