| Advertisement |
Dec. 9 (UPI) -- Thomas Muller, Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala each scored to lead Bayern Munich to a 3-0 victory over Barcelona, knocking the Spanish La Liga power out of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League soccer tournament. The group stage shutout occurred Wednesday in Munich, Germany. Barcelona failed to advance to the tournament's Round of 16 for the first time since 2004, Lionel Messi's first season with the team.
Advertisement
"Against Barca it just kind of clicks for me," Muller told reporters. "We played well. Of course, not everything was perfect.
"When you play Barca, who always press high and try to put you under pressure, there's space for our wide players. Sometimes the timing of the passes and the runs weren't ideal. We could have done more in the second half. But we had fun."
Muller drew first blood in the 34th minute of the Group E matchup at Allianz Arena. Striker Robert Lewandowski ran up the left flank to spark the score. He received a long through ball and dribbled around a defender when he reached the box.
He finished the play with a short chip toward the far post. Muller ran into the area and headed the feed over the goal line.
Sane doubled the advantage just before halftime. Midfielder Kingsley Coman dribbled about 40 yards from the goal and sent a short pass to Sane to his left to set up that score. Sane took a touch inside and fired a 30-yard shot.
The powerful attempt curved from right to left and beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen in the 43rd minute.
Musiala scored the final goal in the 62nd minute. Defender Alphonso Davies received a long pass on the left flank and dribbled into the box to start that sequence.
Davies passed to his right just as he reached the end line. The short feed found Musiala, who finished the play with a one-touch shot into the far-post netting.
Bayern won Group E with a perfect 6-0 record and a 22-3 goal differential. Barcelona finished third in the group, with two wins, three losses and a draw.
"We need to start a new stage in Barcelona history," Barcelona manager Xavi told reporters. "We shouldn't settle to be where we are at the moment.
"We are going to work hard and will give everything we have to get the club back to where it deserves to be."
Bayern hosts Mainz in a German Bundesliga matchup at 9:30 a.m. EST Saturday at Allianz Arena. The German squad finds out its next Champions League opponent through the Round of 16 draw, which takes place Monday in Nyon, Switzerland.
Barcelona faces Osasuna in La Liga at 10:15 a.m. Sunday at El Sadar Stadium in Pamplona, Spain.
