There are few soccer teams that are as successful as FC Bayern. In Germany, the supremacy of the star of the south has been unbroken for many years anyway. But the team is no slouch on the international stage either and has already taken home many trophies. In addition, the squad is always a pipeline into the national team. This year, however, Bayern are facing a real challenge: the strong competition in the Champions League
They have already made it through the group stage
Most Premier League odds show that FC Bayern is seen by most observers as a strong contender for the title. However, the Munich team only lived up to this to a limited extent in the group stage. Although they qualified directly for the knock-out phase without having to go through relegation, they only finished in second place. A respectable performance, but anyone familiar with the dominant Bayern from the Bundesliga will be a little surprised. First place went to the other top favourites, Arsenal London. This is where the main rivalry of the season immediately emerges
Which opponents will make it out of the knock-out phase?
The next step for Bayern is to play one of the teams that can qualify for the knock-out phase in the relegation play-off. There is some serious competition to consider here. Atalanta and Olympiacos will probably not necessarily be the opponents to fear. Bayern will potentially face a few old acquaintances from the Bundesliga, however, as both Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund are in the mix here. There could be a repeat of some hot encounters from the German turf here. All of these tasks are definitely achievable for Bayern, however. The players are currently proving to be in excellent form in the Bundesliga in particular
Quarter-finals
At present, of course, it is impossible to say who will be involved in the quarter-finals. The importance of this stage is often underestimated, with teams already mentally preparing for the semi-finals or the final. Unfortunately, Bayern in particular have often been caught off guard here in the past. Any opponent who makes it this far must be taken seriously. However, it is safe to assume that the team under coach Vincent Kompany will not falter this year, as Bayern have shown excellent discipline at a strategic or tactical level recently
Semi-final
Four teams are going through to the final, so these are the real top favourites. It is safe to assume that defending champions Paris Saint-Germain, for example, will find themselves here, even if the Parisians have spilled the beans somewhat in the group stage. Based on the current standings, the rest of the field could be very British. After all, this season in particular is teeming with British teams in the upper divisions of the Champions League. So there is already strong competition between continental Europe and the British Isles. Of course, this adds a particularly emotional component to the whole thing
The big game
On 30 May, everything will be at stake in one encounter. No first leg, no second leg, no goal difference, 90 minutes of exciting soccer that promises to go down in history. Bayern fans will of course be keeping all their fingers crossed that the red and whites will be on the pitch. The most likely rival at the moment is Arsenal London. This would of course be a particularly strong encounter, characterised by a particularly high tempo and aggressive pressing on both sides. For many observers, this encounter is considered the most exciting in the entire tournament. Both teams could win, the question will then be who has the better form on the day
A tentative outlook
At the moment, it looks as if Arsenal London will steamroller through the entire tournament. The question is whether Bayern, or indeed any other team, will be able to counter the Londoners‘ high pressure sufficiently. Munich have all the tools they need to do so. The aim is indeed to make the match a little quicker and more chaotic than the Londoners would like. Bayern must not allow any space for a structured build-up play under any circumstances. Instead, the aim is to disrupt early, pass quickly and dare to launch risky attacks that will overwhelm the British strategists.