RB Salzburg 2-6 Bayern Munich: 5 talking points as hosts capitulate against the Bavarians | UEFA Champions League 2020-21
An underwhelming night in Austria for RB Salzburg saw them thrashed at the hands of Bayern Munich, conceding six goals and scoring only two. Jesse Marsch's men capitulated as Bayern Munich put four past goalkeeper Cican Stanković in the second half, with three of them coming in the final 15 minutes of the game.
After a dominating start to the fixture, RB Salzburg were deservedly leading for 15 minutes of the first half. But a Robert Lewandowski goal from the spot, and an unfortunate own goal by Rasmus Kristensen, meant that Bayern Munich went into half time leading against the Austrian champions.
Salzburg scored the first goal of the second half, as substitute Masaya Ogukawa dispatched a bottom corner shot past Manuel Neuer in the 66th minute, equalizing for the home side. However, the European Champions eventually showed grit and mentality to gradually take the game away from Salzburg.
#5 Depth and experience comes handy for Bayern Munich
For a good 60 minutes of the game, RB Salzburg kept Bayern at bay. The home side out-shot Hansi Flick's men in the first half, taking 7 shots from inside the box against Bayern Munich's 5.
However, Bayern's substitutes changed the game drastically. After Salzburg's equalizer in the second half, Flick decided to bring on Bouna Sarr, Leroy Sane, and Javi Martinez as the Bayern boss was determined to leave with three points.
In the next 10 minutes after the changes, Jerome Boateng's header and a brilliant Leroy Sane finish saw Bayern Munich take a 4-2 lead. Soon, Martinez set up Lewandowski for the fifth goal of the night, followed by Hernandez finishing from close range to make it 6.
Bayern's bench came to the rescue as Sarr and Sane ran riot on the right flank, despite playing for a very brief amount of time. Martinez provided extra cover for his forwards as Bayern finished the job in style.
#4 Winning games without playing well is a habit developed by the best
Bayern Munich were dominated by RB Salzburg for the majority of the game. Manuel Neuer was kept busy at the back by Dominik Szboszlai, Mergim Berisha, and Sekou Koita as the visitors struggled to contain Salzburg.
The home side was not only quick during transition, but seemed to always find space between Bayern's midfield and defense, often splitting Joshua Kimmich and Corentin Tolisso with ease. Bayern missed Leon Goretzka's off-ball positioning as Salzburg bypassed Bayern's midfield in the early minutes of the game.
However, Bayern Munich grew into the second half in prime fashion. Despite letting Okugawa score the equalizer, they made sure to limit Neuer's work in the second half, allowing only six shots. Later, a few subs and higher intensity from the away side was too much for Salzburg as they choked under the pressure.