Soccer Football - Bundesliga - Bayern Munich v 1. FC Union Berlin - Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany - November 2, 2024 Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany reacts REUTERS/Angelika Warmuth
MUNICH, Germany (Reuters) - Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany praised his players for keeping up the intensity level over 90 minutes in their 3-0 win over Union Berlin in the Bundesliga on Saturday.
The league leaders, who host Benfica in the Champions League on Wednesday, were never troubled by the visitors and despite taking a 2-0 win by halftime they came out fighting in the second half, bagging another goal six minutes after the restart to kill off the game.
"I think the team was working hard in first and second half, but I was really happy with our performance in the second half because we did not concede momentum," Kompany told a press conference.
"We did it really well. It was not an easy game therefore it is a great result for us."
This was Bayern's third league win in a row without conceding a goal and they are now on 23 points, three clear of second-placed RB Leipzig, in action later on Saturday.
The Bavarians, undefeated in the league, are desperate for a win over Benfica to turn their European fortunes around.
Bayern have lost two of their three games in the competition so far but for Kompany this does not mean elimination given the new format.
The European top-flight has switched from a group stage to a league phase where 36 teams play eight matches each, with the top eight in the table progressing directly to the next round, while the next 16 teams enter a two-legged playoff.
This means even if Bayern do not finish in the top eight they can still qualify for the knockout stage through the playoff stage.
"Fact is that every Bayern game has pressure. But I am not focusing on pressure. Just on the next game," Kompany said.
"This format is eight teams qualify and 20-odd play in playoffs. For the top eight teams it is true (automatic qualification) but it is not about being in or out of the Champions League with this format."
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
