Germany - Striker Harry Kane's explosive ability could be the key to Bayern collapsing Inter Milan's defence in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals.
In addition to reclaiming the Bundesliga from Leverkusen, Vincent Kompany - a coach with little experience at the highest level - has the task of helping Bayern win the Champions League after 5 years. To do that, the Belgian coach must defeat Inter Milan - a club that is in good form with a 10-match unbeaten streak in all competitions.
This is considered a balanced match, as Bayern is ranked seventh, while Inter is ranked fifth on the Opta power index.
The two teams are also leading their respective national championships but have had contrasting starts. Bayern beat Augsburg 3-1 last weekend to maintain a six-point gap at the top of the Bundesliga. Meanwhile, despite losing a two-goal lead against Parma, Inter Milan are still three points ahead of Napoli.
Visiting the Allianz Arena, Inter are expected to play cautiously, with a defensive fulcrum, and lurking for counter-attacking opportunities. Simone Inzaghi's team have conceded just two goals in 10 Champions League games this season, achieving a clean sheet rate of 80% (8 in 10). This is the best figure, calculated by clubs playing at least 10 games in a Champions League season.
Bayern need Harry Kane's explosive ability to penetrate Inter's solid defensive wall. The English striker has been involved in 50 goals, including 39 goals and 11 assists, in 55 appearances in the Champions League. This season alone, Kane has scored 10 goals and assisted two in 11 games. French winger Michael Olise is Kane's partner. In Bayern's last two games, Olise has assisted the England captain.
Kane and Olise also form Bayern's first line of defence, playing an important role in preventing opponents from circulating the ball. Each match, the "Gray Tigers" have 122 times of high-intensity pressure in the final third of the pitch - the highest figure in the Champions League this season. From there, the German representative makes the opponent lose the ball nearly 13 times per match, also the highest figure in the tournament.
Bayern also need to make the most of their home advantage. The "Gray Tigers" are unbeaten in their last 22 Champions League matches at the Allianz Arena, with 17 wins and 5 draws, since losing 2-3 to PSG in the first leg of the quarterfinals in April 2021.
In their last nine European Cup encounters, Bayern have won five, lost three and drawn one. But Inter have won their last two Champions League knockout matches against Bayern, winning 2-0 in the 2009-10 final and progressing on away goals in the 2010-11 round of 16.
The Opta supercomputer rates Inter as favourites with a 51.5% chance of reaching the semi-finals. But in today's first leg of the quarter-final in Germany, Bayern have a 47% chance of winning - compared to 27.3% for the visitors.
Expected line-up:
Bayern: Urbig; Laimer, Kim, Dier, Guerreiro; Palhinha, Kimmich; Olise, Muller, Sane; Kane.
Inter: Sommer; Acerbi, Bisseck, Bastoni; Darmian, Calhanoglu, Frattesi, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez.