Manuel Neuer has issued an urgent warning against too much euphoria ahead of the decisive Champions League clash against Real Madrid – and at the same time clearly set out the course of action for FC Bayern. Despite the 2-1 win in the first leg, the captain believes the German record champions are still a long way from the semi-finals
„The advantage lies in the fact that we won the first leg. But it’s only one goal, it can go either way,“ Neuer made clear at the final press conference. The 40-year-old knows from his own experience how dangerous Real Madrid are in the top flight: „We can’t overestimate that because we’ve seen in the past how Real can strike.“
Allianz Arena as a decisive factor
Nevertheless, the Bayern keeper is optimistic about the second leg – above all because of the special atmosphere in Munich. „We have the advantage that the home crowd is on fire on evenings like tomorrow,“ emphasized Neuer. For him, it is clear that if the team and fans perform together, that can make all the difference
At the same time, the veteran emphasized the team’s mental state: „We’re confident. The team is on fire!“ A sentence that shows how focused Munich are going into the match – despite all the warnings about their opponents
No focus on individual players
Interesting: When asked about Real Madrid’s stars, Neuer remained deliberately matter-of-fact. Neither Vinícius Jr. nor Kylian Mbappé are the focus for him. „It’s not about the names, it’s about an important Champions League game for us,“ he explained
Instead, the captain is focusing on team unity: „If we work as a team, I’m very positive that we can make it to the semi-finals.“ A clear message – and at the same time an indication of what will be important against the individually top-class Madrilenians
Even a penalty shoot-out in mind
Neuer even has a possible penalty shoot-out in mind, with the 2014 world champion referring to his past experience: „As a goalkeeper, you have to develop your own feeling for what’s going on in the opponent’s head.“
Neuer’s approach off the pitch is also striking. The keeper is consciously trying to shield himself from external influences: „I haven’t been so active on social media in the past week.“ Instead, the focus is fully on preparation.