FC Bayern’s Champions League home game against Union Saint-Gilloise is just over an hour away and coach Vincent Kompany will have to improvise again for the penultimate group game, particularly in defence.
Manuel Neuer starts in goal, with Raphaël Guerreiro, Minjae Kim, Jonathan Tah and Tom Bischof defending in the back four. The 20-year-old will once again be deployed at right-back – despite a few wobbles in Leipzig. Alphonso Davies is in the squad following his illness, but will remain on the bench for the time being. Dayot Upamecano is absent at short notice due to illness.
In central midfield, Joshua Kimmich takes on the role of pace-setter alongside Aleksandar Pavlovic. The decision not to move him to the right underlines how important Kompany considers the influence of the veteran in the center to be. After coming on as a substitute against Leipzig, Kimmich showed how important he is to the team as a pace-setter. He seems to have finally cured his ankle problems.
In attack, the coach will rely on Michael Olise, Lennart Karl and Luis Diaz behind centre-forward Harry Kane, with Jamal Musiala and Serge Gnabry available as options for the second half and Leon Goretzka also on the bench for the time being.
Last step towards the round of 16
A win against the Belgian underdogs would also see FC Bayern qualify for the round of 16 ahead of schedule. With five wins from six games, Bayern are currently level on points with Real Madrid on 15 points, although the latter already played yesterday. Even a draw would be a sure ticket to the round of 16 thanks to Bayern’s good goal difference.
They are currently two points ahead of ninth-placed Atalanta Bergamo, who face Athletico Bilbao tonight. First place in the table is still mathematically possible, but depends on the outcome of Arsenal’s last game. FC Bayern will play PSV Eindhoven on 28 January on the final matchday of the league phase.
Kompany does not want to underestimate his opponents today: „They want to make the game in the league and have the ball. But they are even more comfortable when they are the underdogs. Like in the Champions League. They have hero tasks there, so we have to be careful.“
Union Saint-Gilloise arrive with a chance of making the play-offs, but need points to do so. They are currently in 30th place, six points behind a place in the play-offs. Several players will have to be particularly careful due to the threat of yellow cards.
The line-ups at a glance
FC Bayern: Neuer – Bischof, Kim, Tah, Guerreiro – Kimmich, Pavlovic – Olise, Karl, Luis Diaz – Kane
FC Bayern substitutes‘ bench: Ulreich, Urbig – Gnabry, Goretzka, Musiala, Davies, Ito, Kiala, Santos
Union Saint-Gilloise: To follow shortly