No club turns on the relentlessness quite like Bayern, which Salzburg found out the hard way after entering their UCL last-16 second leg with hopes of a famous upset.
What was all the fuss about? A first leg draw against RB Salzburg, only secured in injury time, suggested Bayern Munich could struggle for a place in the Champions League last eight, but an emphatic, 7–1 win in the home leg. Offered a reminder of how brutal it can be if given the chance. Skeptics would say it was only Salzburg, and there were some defensive concerns before goals began to flow, but it was still an impressive response under pressure.
Bayern have not been playing well in recent weeks. Before the first leg, it suffered a 4–2 loss at Bochum, and after struggling to break Salzburg in Austria, it won a 4–1 victory over the struggling Grether Firth and ended in an out-of-type. Eintracht won with an unconvinced victory over Frankfurt. and a draw against Bayer Leverkusen. This is a very modern form of Superclub wavering, given that Bayern leads the Bundesliga by nine points, but the relentless attack hasn't been so relentless until recently.
However, progress here was never really in doubt. Bayern had been the better side in Salzburg, winning the expected goals, a little under 1 to 2.5 depending on which model you use, and criticism of its performance was probably conditioned by the scoreline. Tuesday was negligent at times, but almost got ahead of Lewandowski in the first minute. Philipp Kohn saved Salzburg on that occasion, but Lewandowski was fouled in the box by Maximilian Wober twice before the halfway point of the first half.
Twice Lewandowski converted, and he completed his hat-trick after 23 minutes, followed by the clearance of Kohn's effort after his shin was cannoned and bounced against the post. Only 10 minutes and 22 seconds elapsed between his first and third goals as he set a new record for a hat-trick in the first ever competition in a Champions League match. This took his goal count for the season to 42, marking the seventh consecutive season that he has reached the 40-goal mark.
It was for the series, and Salzburg almost clearly withered. Serge Gnabry added a quarter at the half-hour mark, though he was helped by Mohamed Kemara caught in the possession of Kingsley Coman and then in a less than convincing attempt by Cohn to make the save. Given two clumsy fouls and then the messy buildup for the third, it was hard to avoid the idea that Salzburg, having been so disciplined in the first leg, had given the game away.
Bayern, of course, deserves credit for being so ruthless when opportunities arise, and it is the kind of team that puts pressure on an opponent, but a side better than Salzburg would not be so accommodating. And it will also be a matter of concern for Bayern how open he looks before the second goal. Twice in the first 10 minutes, Salzburg, as in the first leg, got behind the Bayern wingback and Nicolas Capaldo probably should have done better with a second-minute effort that Koman managed to deflect wide.
By the time Salzburg's goal was reached after 70 minutes via Maurits Kjgergaard, it was five down, with Thomas Müller adding a fifth after a sharp turn on the edge of the box. Müller got sixth after a one-two with Lewandowski and then another defensive lapse helped Leroy Sane to seventh for another famous German 7–1 victory and another Bayern 8–2 progress to the Champions League stage. given a gift But before that somewhere those defensive loopholes will come to the fore.
To an extent, perhaps, they were a function of Bayern's injuries. Manuel Neuer returned, and it probably added some rights, but the absence of Alfonso Davies with COVID-19 myocarditis probably conditioned the use of the last three. It is still not entirely clear when the Canadian international will be able to return. The back of midfield is also lacking, with Leon Goretzka and Corentin Tolisso both injured, where Joshua Kimmich is essentially the only defensive presence.
This points to a wider issue for Bayern, which is that its squad is not as deep as the Premier League's elite clubs. To an extent it doesn't matter, as it can rest players at home level, but it also leaves it vulnerable to some significant injuries in a similar area.
But this is for the future. The question here was whether Bayern could get by Salzburg, and could it happen easily and in any style.