Bayern Munich 1-0 AC Milan - 5 Players who impressed for Bayern
Bayern Munich faced AC Milan at the Children's Mercy Park in their third game of the International Champions Cup. The Bundesliga side had endured a mixed start to their preseason, losing their first game 2-1 to Arsenal, before destroying Real Madrid 3-1 in the following match. AC Milan, on the other hand, will begin their International Champions Cup with this game, which brings together two clubs who endured contrasting fortunes last season.
Even though Die Roten won the Bundesliga as well as the DFB-Pokal last season, they were hardly convincing. Bayern's weaknesses were exposed in the Champions League, where they were defeated in the round of 16 by eventual Champions Liverpool. However, AC Milan fared even worse, as they secured Europa League football, only to be exempted from the tournament due to breach of FFP rules. This game, as such, held different significance to both sides. For Nico Kovac, though, it was a chance to build on a fine performance against Real Madrid.
The Bayern Manager went for an attack minded team against Milan, opting for Neuer in goal, with Kimmich, Sule, Pavard and Davies making up the back four. Goretzka and Renato Sanches started alongside Tolisso in midfield, while in attack, Muller was partnered by Arp, who replaced Lewandowski just before the start of the game, and Coman.
Bayern started the game stronger, but Milan did knock on the door a couple of times early in the half. The Bundesliga Champions then took the lead in the third minute of first half injury time and the game went into the break with the score at 1-0.
In the second half, Kovac made quite a few changes, and Bayern did have a few more chances, however, the game ended with a 1-0 win for the German giants. Here are 5 players who impressed in the game for Bayern Munich.
#5 Benjamin Pavard
Bayern's new signing started in a center back role and looked assured all night. Even though Bayern controlled proceedings at the beginning of the game, Milan did have the odd chances every now and then. And with the dangerous Piatek leading the line, there was an inherent threat in their attack. However, Pavard ensured that the Polish striker had a quiet game, denying him any room to maneouvre a clear shot on goal.
The Frenchman was stellar at the back for his team and had an impressive outing for Bayern.