Bayern Munich: Top performers in home win against Benfica

After a glorious 5-2 win over Benfica in the UEFA Champions League, Bayern Munich has now sealed their seat in the Round of 16. With goals coming from the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Serge Gnabry, and Leroy Sane, Bayern cruised past their opposition. Even though this game was an excellent display of teamwork and coordination, there were a few players who took the field with such a class that it would be an insult to say they just had a “good” performance. Here is my list of Bayern Munich’s top player performances from their win over Benfica.

Alphonso Davies

In his third consecutive start for the German giants, Alphonso Davies’s form has been increasing exponentially. For the 21-year-old, this game reminded me of the amazing run of play we saw Davies have in the 2020 season in which Bayern went on to win the Champions League. In the first half, Davies’s defensive work to stop the counterattacks was spectacular.

Around the 40th minute, he shot down the left side of the field with pace, taking on two Benfica defenders himself. After beating them 2-on-1, Davies managed an inch-perfect cross to find an open Leon Goretzka. In the second half, Davies played a massive part in the attacking front in assisting Leroy Sane for Bayern’s third goal of the game, and also recorded a shot on target which drew a great save from Benfica’s keeper. Overall, Alphonso Davies was hands-down the best defender on the pitch today, and his threat in the final third-placed him rightfully on this list.

Kingsley Coman

Even though there is a lot of speculation surrounding his future, nothing was distracting Kingsley Coman from the task at hand- to do what he can to help his team win this game. Watching the build-up to each goal, it seems like Coman played a massive role in just about every single one. To kick his high-class performance off, in the 26th minute Coman sent a perfectly placed pass over the sea of Benfica defenders to find the head of Lewandowski, in which he buried it home.

Six minutes later, it was Coman that picked out Lewandowski with another cross, ultimately leading to Bayern’s second goal. With everything coming in three’s, in the 49th minute, Coman once again had the crucial cross that opened up the middle of the pitch for Davies to find an open Sane. Throughout the entirety of the game, Kingsley Coman’s passing has never been so precise, and I believe that his performance won Bayern this game.

Robert Lewandowski

Who other than Robert Lewandowski would top this list. Even though having had a penalty saved after a poorly placed shot, he still finished the game with three goals and an assist, winning himself the Man of the Match award. Scoring three goals from just six shots (five on target),  shows how clinical Lewandowski is in front of the goal. Six shots, three of them finding the back of the net.

Yes, the hattrick already sets this to be an amazing performance from Lewandowski, but the assist he had to Serge Gnabry is what sets this performance apart from the rest. In the 32nd minute, a cross from Coman landed right to the feet of Lewandowski, in which he took the goalie one-on-one, opting for a fake shot. This caused both the defender and goalie to bite and commit to the right side of the goal, leaving a wide-open Gnabry to receive the ball. All in all, an 11/10 performance from Robert Lewandowski.