Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann has revealed that the absence of Neymar Jr doesn’t actually change his plans
PSG have lost Neymar to an ankle injury yet again. The Brazilian will undergo surgery and will be sidelined for at least four months.
However, Bayern Munich’s boss claims that their preparation for the match at Allianz Arena wasn’t changed all that much.
Nagelsmann demands Bayern to be on the offensive
Bayern absolutely dominated PSG at their home in the Champions League last-16 first leg which ended 1-0. A goal from former PSG winger Coeman sent the Bavarians back home as victors.
PSG have now been dealt a blow as Neymar’s injury and subsequent operation will see him lose the remainder of the season. But for Nagelsmann, things don’t change because of it.
“It doesn’t change much,” Nagelsmann said at Tuesday’s pre-match press conference when asked about Neymar being ruled out.
“Mbappe plays from the start – that changes something. PSG have a clear idea with Lionel Messi and Mbappe up front. We have to prevent passes to Messi.
“We also have to be patient. Our players know we can’t defend every attack, so Yann will also have a part to play in goal.”
“We have to prevent passes to Messi“
Mbappe, who has scored 30 goals in 30 matches this season, believes that PSG are still the favorites. However, Bayern’s skipper Thomas Muller begs to differ.
“Everyone can assess that for themselves,” he said. “We won the first leg 1-0; I think that’s an advantage.
“But a one-goal deficit can always be caught up in football. I understand his opinion, he has a lot of self-confidence.
“He is a player who poses a threat to us. You have to think about how to prevent this. It’s still a team sport. We have to block the passes and be courageous in duels.”
Julian Nagelsmann went on to elaborate on how they will approach the game on Tuesday and the way they will exploit PSG’s defense, who hasn’t got a clean sheet in the Champions League this season.
“Their defense isn’t a weakness,” Nagelsmann said. “We have developed an idea for tomorrow in terms of how we can hurt them.
“We don’t want to focus just on defending our lead; we want to also score goals ourselves.”
