Union Berlin pushed Bayern Munich to the brink. Despite this, Kane’s late goal and their opponents’ mistakes left the Munich side satisfied. Luis Díaz provided a memorable moment.
Satisfied faces were everywhere, and Manuel Neuer was no exception. On the contrary, the former national team goalkeeper was particularly ecstatic. “We not only earned a point, but we also extended our lead,” Neuer declared after FC Bayern’s 2-2 draw against 1. FC Union Berlin. Indeed, from Munich’s perspective, this point earned by the German champions against the Berlin side felt like a victory. Firstly, because Harry Kane’s equalizer came in stoppage time, thus avoiding their first defeat of the season, and secondly, because their rivals Leipzig (1-3 at Hoffenheim) and Dortmund (1-1 at HSV) both stumbled. FC Bayern’s lead over second-placed Leipzig thus increased to six points.
After winning without actually securing the victory, it was much easier to lavish praise. “Union deserved the point for their performance,” declared Bayern’s sporting director, Christoph Freund. And he was right.
The way Union Berlin tackled the unbeaten league leaders was astonishing. Bold, self-assured, and prepared for anything. The Berliners besieged half of Bayern Munich’s defense like students protesting in a classroom. Relentless and utterly unwilling to relinquish their occupied territory. This attitude was fueled by an early success that, due to the technology used in Bundesliga matches, turned against them. Ilyas Ansah appeared to have put Union ahead with a header from a corner, but VAR ruled the goal out for offside. As expected, the intervention wasn’t met with enthusiasm by the Berlin fans, but it ignited a “now more than ever” mentality within the team. Union simply kept at it, displaying qualities rarely seen at this club. One tactical solution after another; Union looked remarkably confident on the ball and caused Bayern more problems than they probably anticipated.
Bavaria has been lacking ideas for a long time. It’s quite possible that Bayern were feeling the effects of their exhausting match in Paris. It’s also possible that Union Berlin’s near-flawless performance meant the visitors barely managed a shot on target for almost the entire first half. Only the Berliners posed a threat, mainly from set pieces.
Union took the lead thanks to one of those plays. Once again, a corner kick was dangerously delivered into the Bayern penalty area, where Danilho Doekhi volleyed the rebound directly into the net. It wasn’t a powerful or well-placed shot, but it was strong enough to slip under Manuel Neuer’s torso. The Bayern goalkeeper didn’t come off well. It was one of the former international’s few errors this season. “There was a lot of traffic in front of the goal, I wanted to hold onto the ball. It was a bad decision,” Neuer declared.
At that moment, it seemed the mistake would lead to a penalty against Bayern Munich. The question arose of how the Munich side, lacking imagination, would manage to score a goal. “We offered very little in the first half hour,” declared coach Vincent Kompany.
A masterpiece by Díaz
His players didn’t provide the answer collectively, but rather through a single individual. Luis Díaz’s equalizing goal was a masterpiece in three senses. First, the Colombian saved the ball with an acrobatic tackle on the goal line; then, almost as if he were leaping, he shook off the disoriented Janik Haberer, before finally unleashing a powerful shot from an impossible angle. “Sensational. Absolutely fantastic,” said Neuer.
The play left everyone speechless and, at the same time, confirmed why Bayern Munich has dominated this season with such ease. The individual quality, especially in attack, is so high that often a single move is enough to achieve success. Shortly before halftime, Díaz could even have put his team ahead, but he failed at the simplest task: going one-on-one with the goalkeeper. Harry Kane had given him a perfect pass.
