It’s one of those football nights that really has all the makings of a great sporting event. On Wednesday evening, FC Bayern Women and Real Madrid face each other for the first time in the Champions League, when the Munich side host Los Blancos at Sportpark Unterhaching for a Matchday 3 clash in the league phase. The match kicks off at 18:45 CET.
🎟️ Get your tickets for FC Bayern Women vs. Real Madrid here! You can apply for tickets for the match against Barcelona here!
Latest news from FC Bayern
Benfica held out against Bayern for more than 70 minutes, then things happened very quickly: Klara Bühl scored, Pernille Harder added a second, and Franziska Kett wrapped up the 3–0 away win. The Munich side had spent a long time searching for a way through in Lisbon; in the end, however, they secured their first three points of this Champions League campaign. Following their 2–2 draw in the opener against Manchester City, Bayern now have four points to their name – and a goal difference of 5:2. Harder’s strike marked a milestone: with her 50th goal in the Champions League, she drew level with Eugénie Le Sommer. Only Anja Mittag (51) and Ada Hegerberg (69) have scored more.
Alongside Harder, once again it was Bühl who turned heads in Lisbon: the 25-year-old scored one goal herself and set up another. Across both matchdays, she's been one of the standout players in the competition. Twelve shot assists currently represent a personal best; since the start of last season, she's racked up nine assists in the Champions League. A glance at the remaining fixtures shows that Bayern will need even more moments like this in the league phase. After all, Real Madrid will be followed by Paris Saint-Germain, Austria Vienna and Barcelona – further giants of European club football.
🗞️ We spoke to Melanie Leupolz ahead of the match about the clash against Real Madrid:
Leupolz: 'Bayern can play a big role in Europe'
For their opponents, Munich has always been a tough place to visit in the Champions League. Bayern are unbeaten in their last 16 home games in the group stage/league phase and have won 12 times and drawn four. This run is a major asset, but no guarantee: as early as Wednesday against Real, we’ll see just how much their late victory in Lisbon meant for the next tough test.
The opposition: Real Madrid
Real Madrid are currently sitting second in the Spanish Liga F on 19 points – behind defending champions Barcelona. Following their 7–0 defeat to the Catalans in early October, head coach Pau Quesada’s side have recently got back on track: Los Blancos won 3–1 against RCD Espanyol and 3–2 against CD Tenerife. From a Bayern perspective, there are some familiar faces in the Spanish side: midfielder Arianna Caruso only moved from Munich to Madrid in the summer. Former FCB players Sara Däbritz and Lineth Beerensteyn are also in the White Ballet squad.
In the Champions League, the Spaniards have lost just one of their last eight group stage/league phase matches, winning three and drawing four. Los Blancos are unbeaten in their last four matches – the club’s longest unbeaten run on the European stage. Real kicked off the current league campaign with a 1–1 draw against Paris Saint-Germain. Last time out, the team were once again held to a draw at Manchester City. And now it's time for the first competitive fixture between FC Bayern Women and Real Madrid. The teams have only met once before: in a pre-season friendly, the Munich side enjoyed a comfortable 4–1 win at the FC Bayern Campus.
🔍 The lowdown on Real Madrid:
Senß in the centre & Schröder in attack: Real examined
Team news
José Barcala is still without Lena Oberdorf (knee problems) and Giulia Gwinn (torn ligament) for the match against Real Madrid. Jovana Damnjanović, however, could return to the squad after recovering from a muscular injury.
Pre-match thoughts
José Barcala: “Real Madrid have been very versatile tactically this season and have the quality to pose a threat with individual moves. The team can press high up the pitch and apply pressure in various ways. That’s why we'll need to remain flexible and keep adapting as the game progresses. It'll be important to stay focused and well-coordinated – and to recognise situations faster than the opposition. The game will keep changing over the course of 90 minutes. As a team, we must be able to react quickly to these changes if we're going to be successful.”
Sarah Zadrazil: “Real Madrid have many interesting and strong players in their squad. We want to have possession ourselves tomorrow evening and control the game. It'll be crucial to recognise what the opposition are presenting us with and to find the right solutions through our pressing and our movement with the ball. It's a head-to-head between two of Europe’s best teams – this is exactly the sort of Champions League match we train for every day. We’re fired up and hope that lots of fans will turn up to support us. Our aim is clear: we want to keep the three points in Munich.”
🎟️ Get your tickets for FC Bayern Women vs. Real Madrid here! You can apply for tickets for the match against Barcelona here!
Get your tickets for Champions League home games vs. Real Madrid and Barcelona