Bayern Strikes
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Bayern Munich stumble to 2-1 victory against tough-tackling Sevilla

By Tim Richards

SEVILLA, SPAIN - APRIL 3: (L-R) Mats Hummels of Bayern Munchen, Pablo Sarabia of Sevilla FC during the UEFA Champions League match between Sevilla v Bayern Munchen at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on April 3, 2018 in Sevilla Spain (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)
SEVILLA, SPAIN - APRIL 3: (L-R) Mats Hummels of Bayern Munchen, Pablo Sarabia of Sevilla FC during the UEFA Champions League match between Sevilla v Bayern Munchen at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on April 3, 2018 in Sevilla Spain (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images) /
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The first leg of Bayern Munich’s quarter-final fixture against Sevilla was tougher than a lot of people expected, but a 2-1 win means the Bavarians return to Germany with a good advantage.

Out of the remaining contestants in the Champions League, Sevilla were possibly one of the more favored opponents for Bayern Munich. Set in 7th position in La Liga, Sevilla scored a great upset against Manchester United in the round of 16 so should never have been underestimated.

Noticeable absences from the squad were those of David Alaba and Corentin Tolisso. Alaba apparently was suffering from a back issue whereas Tolisso’s absence is still unexplained.

The match began with some familiar sights: heavy Bayern possession and passing for passing’s sake (presumably expecting Sevilla to sit back and wait for their chance). They did no such thing, however. The Spanish side did not wait, but instead showed Bayern that their victory against Manchester United was by no means a fluke.

Their build-up play and danger on counter-attacks meant that any intentions of Bayern playing at their own pace went straight out the window. Several tough tackles and some pushing and shoving led to an early scuffle between Arturo Vidal, Javi Martinez, Franck Ribery and several Sevilla players. This saw the Frenchman pick up a yellow card.

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Harder than you think

The match was far more end-to-end than any fan would have guessed, as Sevilla really brought a fight. 20 minutes in, Sevilla had the first big chance of the night. Joaquin Correa sent in a cross that Wissam Ben Yedder managed to block towards Pablo Sarabia. A perfect opportunity for the Spaniard but, thankfully, he sent it wide.

After 31 minutes, though, the deadlock was broken, sadly by the home team. After yet more dangerous runs down their left wing, left-back Sergio Escudero sent in a high cross that was controlled by Sarabia’s elbow, taking Juan Bernat out of play, and he finished the shot to put his side up 1-0.

This was a very big wake up call for Bayern and looked to be yet another chapter in the ever-present curse of the Bavarians facing Spanish teams in the Champions League. Five minutes later, Arturo Vidal went down injured and was replaced by James Rodriguez, fresh off his man-of-the-match performance against Dortmund at the weekend.

A near instant impact, James charged forward toward the Sevilla goal before laying the ball off to Ribery. Ribery’s subsequent cross deflected off Jesus Navas and into the goal, helping Bayern level things up. A terrible goal, but a goal nevertheless.

Second half

Scoring so soon before half-time was certainly a bonus, but that did not shake up Sevilla. Bayern still had the remaining 45 minutes to not only win but, above all else, not lose. Rafinha replaced Juan Bernat. The Spaniard was Bayern’s stand-out player in the first half, but — sadly — for all the wrong reasons. While his desire to play and do well is evident and admired, several bad games in a row will not help his cause for being Bayern’s number one left-back.

A change in personell, however, did not drastically alter the match. Sevilla continued to push forward and still looked dangerous. Several key tackles from Bayern center-back pairing Hummels and Boateng, as well as Javi Martinez, helped to squash any chances the Spanish team had.

It wasn’t until the 68th minute that Bayern were able to take the lead. A pinpoint Ribery cross found Thiago, who headed into the ground against the foot of a Sevilla player and into the goal. Again, another deflected goal. But, again, a goal is a goal. Both Ribery and Thiago played very well all game and this goal between them was the culmination of their hard work. Very similar to the Dortmund game on Saturday, Bayern’s left sided central-midfielder and the left-winger were the most dangerous combination today.

After taking the lead, Bayern managed to hold on right until the final whistle in a match that presumably exhausted most of the players, with the exception of Robert Lewandowski who appeared to be anonymous throughout the full 90 minutes.

Next: Lackluster Bayern Munich edge past Sevilla 2-1 -- Player grades

10 vs. 11

For a team as tough as Sevilla, Bayern need a striker prepared to get his hands dirty and fight for the ball. Lewandowski achieved 28 touches of the ball, compared to goalkeeping extraordinaire Sven Ulreich who saw almost double that. It was as if Bayern were playing with 10 men. At this stage of the competition (or any competition), those sort of absent performances should be so far away but, sadly, this match went by without any real evidence of Lewandowski taking part. If Heynckes wants to guarantee a win in Munich next week, Sandro Wagner may be his best option.