Lazio won 1-0 in the first leg of their last-16 match thanks to a penalty kick from Ciro Immobile, Bayern Munich still has work to do if they hope to advance to the Champions League quarterfinals.
After a reckless charge by Bayern defender Dayot Upamecano on Gustav Isaksen, which resulted in the France international being sent off with a straight red card, Immobile scored his penalty kick in the 69th minute.
The German team’s attacks were stymied by disciplined Lazio, and Bayern was helpless the entire time, managing only one effort on goal.
The Bavarians were five points off the top of the Bundesliga after losing 3-0 to leaders Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday. Despite their best efforts, the team’s head coach Thomas Tuchel will face more pressure when they return to Munich following their second straight loss.
After the loss, Tuchel downplayed worries about his job despite the fact that Bayern had already lost both of their previous games without scoring.
“Worried about my future? No, I am not,” he said.
Bayern condemn racist abuse aimed at Upamecano
Soon after the match, Bayern Munich issued a statement to “strongly condemn” racist abuse aimed at defender Dayot Upamecano on social media following his red card.
“FC Bayern strongly condemn the racist comments being directed towards Dayot Upamecano on social media,” the club said.
“Anyone who comments hateful words such as these is no fan of our club. We’re all behind you, Upa!”
Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane said after the game: “Really tough week. In the first half, we started well and had clear chances, one for myself. In these games, they’re big moments.
“The second half was disappointing. We came out with less energy and less confidence. We got punished. Once you go down to 10 men it’s always difficult.
“We have to find it among ourselves. We’re still in the race for the Bundesliga and still in this tie. We have to keep fighting.
“We’re in a difficult spell. We have to fight. We have to turn it around. We have big games and big things to fight for. We’re not out of it, we will never give up. We just need to turn it around. One game or spark can turn it around.”
Bayern Munich head coach Thomas Tuchel said: “We’re frustrated and angry about the defeat. I think we lost the game, I’m not sure Lazio won it.
“I’m not sure why we lost our conviction in the second half, but we did, and then we fell behind. I can’t explain it because we told the team to maintain their intensity and be even braver going forward, but we seemed to lose face at the start of the half.
“There are things we can build on. In the first half, we created some good chances, some big chances and one huge one with Jamal (Musiala), but in the end, we didn’t have a single shot on target, so it’s clear you can’t win a game like that.
“But we’ve got a second leg and, obviously in conjunction with the last result, it doesn’t look great, but we’ll keep working hard.”
On Sunday, Lazio will play a pivotal match in the European Cup against Bologna, who are currently in fifth place in the Serie A standings, two points ahead of their opponents.
On Sunday afternoon, Bayern Munich will go to Bochum in an attempt to regain their chances of winning the Bundesliga after losing to Bayer Leverkusen the previous weekend.
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