Labor victory against Saint-Gilloise: Bayern book their place in the CL round of 16 | OneFootball

FC Bayern have reached the last 16 of the Champions League ahead of schedule, beating Union Saint-Gilloise 2-0 at the Allianz Arena with a strong second half to book their place in the last 16.

Munich dominated proceedings from the outset, but struggled for a long time against the Belgian champions, who were deep-lying. Despite having far more possession, there was a lack of pace and surprise moments in the first half. Union defended compactly, made occasional pinpricks – and even had the best chance of the first half. After a cross, Promise David had a completely free header, but failed to score from close range against Manuel Neuer, who reacted strongly and saved the 0-0 draw for his team.

Bayern continued to dominate the game, but hardly had any clear-cut chances. Lennart Karl tried from distance and Harry Kane popped up in the penalty area a few times, but Kompany’s side were unable to develop any real penetration at first. As a result, they went into the break goalless after an uneventful first half.

Kane breaks the spell – Bayern become dominant

photo: Getty Images

After the break, FC Bayern noticeably upped the tempo and immediately took control. The visitors barely got out of their own half, while Munich increasingly established themselves. The deserved reward came in the 52nd minute: following a corner from Michael Olise, Harry Kane got through at the first post and headed in from close range to take the lead. The striker thus ended a run of three Champions League games without a direct goal contribution.

The Englishman followed up just a few minutes later. After a pass from Olise, Kane appeared in the penalty area on the half-left, put the ball past the keeper and was clearly brought down by Kjell Scherpen. The striker himself confidently converted the spot-kick to make it 2-0. It was Kane’s seventh goal of the current Champions League season.

The match seemed to be decided, but was given a special touch in the 63rd minute when Minjae Kim was shown a yellow card after another tactical foul and had to leave the pitch early. Despite being outnumbered, Bayern’s victory was no longer in danger.

In the closing stages, Munich even had the chance to score a third goal. Following a handball by Kamiel Van de Perre, the referee again awarded a penalty after VAR intervention, but this time Harry Kane failed to hit the crossbar and missed out on a flawless hat-trick.

In the final minutes, FC Bayern managed the result confidently with ten men, did not concede any more defensively and secured the important home win without any major problems.

The win secures a direct place in the last 16 of the Champions League. On the final matchday of the league phase, FC Bayern will play PSV Eindhoven, while Union Saint-Gilloise will host Atalanta Bergamo and continue their fight for a play-off place.