Bayern Munich looking for confidence boost at Manchester United

Posted Tuesday, December 12, 2023 by ESPN

Jamal Musiala sent a warning to Manchester United ahead of their crucial Champions League clash against Bayern Munich by insisting the German champions need to bounce back from the heavy defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt by winning at Old Trafford.

United need to beat Bayern on Tuesday and hope FC Copenhagen and Galatasaray draw to qualify for the round of 16. The Bundesliga side have already confirmed their place as winners of Group A, but Musiala said Bayern, who haven't lost a group-stage game more than six years, need to win to recover from their 5-1 loss to Frankfurt on Saturday.

"That defeat against Frankfurt, it surprised us, but we are going to look ahead and this presents us with a good opportunity to get our confidence back," Musiala said. "I think no matter who we play we always want to win.

"We want to keep our unbeaten streak in the Champions League group stages and want to keep our rhythm going into the winter break, so it's a very important game for us. We will go out and try to win."

Bayern drew with FC Copenhagen last time out, but they haven't gone successive games without a group-stage win since 2009.

Thomas Tuchel hinted in his prematch news conference that he will play his strongest team at Old Trafford, including former Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane, who has scored 22 goals in 19 games following his summer move to Germany.

"United lost their last game, they have had their ups and downs this season but they have lots of quality and they are a dangerous team who can hurt us," Musiala said. "We won't underestimate them. They can score many goals, they have lots of quality if they are playing well and with confidence they are tough to beat."

United have scored 12 goals in five group games, but sit bottom of Group A with four points. Defeat to Bayern will see them exit Europe altogether, while a third-place finish will see them drop into the Europa League.

"They are always a dangerous team," Tuchel said. "They have a certain aura and they are very difficult to beat. They can endure difficult phases in their matches, it's in the DNA of the club.

"They scored a high, high number of goals in the group. They conceded a lot because they don't have enough points for the goals they scored. It's a difficult place for us to play but it's a good challenge."

United go into the match coming off a 3-0 loss to AFC Bournemouth at Old Trafford on Saturday.