MUNICH, Germany: Forward Harry Kane scored once in either half to guide German champions Bayern Munich to a 3-1 victory over Chelsea in their Champions League opener on Wednesday.
The England striker scored Bayern’s second goal with a 27th minute penalty after an own goal by Chelsea’s Trevoh Chalobah had put the hosts in the lead in the 20th.
Chelsea briefly rallied, with Cole Palmer pulling one back just two minutes later, but Kane, who has already scored five goals in three Bundesliga matches so far, struck again with a clinical low finish in the 63rd to settle the hosts’ nerves.
Bayern, who crushed Hamburg SV 5-0 in the Bundesliga on Saturday, started their Champions League season with a win for the 22nd consecutive time and continued their unbeaten run across all competitions while Chelsea tasted defeat for the first time this season.
“Amazing result, top performance against a really good side,” Kane said. “We went 2-0 up and it was disappointing to concede straight after the second goal.
“We stayed calm and did very well in the second half. We made it difficult for them to press. Then they got tired and the spaces started opening up. It was a tough, physical game. We’re delighted with the result.”
The Club World Cup winners, unbeaten in the Premier League, had an early chance with Enzo Fernandez in front of goal but Konrad Laimer blocked the shot at the last moment.
Bayern scored with their first chance of the game after Michael Olise cut into the box and Chalobah, under pressure from Bayern’s Dayot Upamecano, turned the ball in for an own goal.
They doubled their lead in the 27th after Kane was brought down in the box and stepped up to convert the resulting spot kick. Their joy, however, was short-lived with Palmer, making his first start after a groin injury, superbly finishing a move he himself started in Chelsea’s half two minutes later.
KANE DOUBLE
With the hosts stepping on the gas after the break, the English side had keeper Robert Sanchez to thank for keeping the scoreline tight after he first stopped a Kane shot in the 57th and then sensationally palmed away Olise’s effort a minute later wide.
But he could do nothing to stop Kane curling in his low shot after some terrible defending from the visitors.
Kane, who has scored 21 goals in the Champions League for both Tottenham and Bayern, is now one of only three players with 20+ goals scored for two different clubs in the Champions League, along with Cristiano Ronaldo and Brazilian Neymar.
Bayern keeper Manuel Neuer, who became the oldest Bayern player in a Champions League game at age 39, had little to do in the second half and was beaten only once in the 90th when a defence-splitting pass from Andrey Santos sent Palmer through, only for his effort to be ruled offside.
“I thought we played well. We’ve shown we deserve to play here,” Palmer said. “The three goals we conceded were our own fault. We had chances.
“We broke them down well but some chances we missed. They’re a good team. We deserved better than what we got.”
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
