Hansi Flick rues Bayern Munich finishing as Mauricio Pochettino hails PSG ‘sacrifice’ after five-goal thriller
Bayern Munich head coach Hansi Flick was left to lament his side’s profligate finishing after a rare home defeat in the Champions League.
The holders have a lot of work to do to rescue their quarter-final tie against Paris Saint-Germain after an epic repeat of last season’s Lisbon showpiece ended in a dramatic 3-2 victory for the visitors in Bavaria.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Thomas Muller hit back for Bayern - without injured 42-goal top scorer Robert Lewandowski and Serge Gnabry on Wednesday - following initial goals from Kylian Mbappe and Marquinhos at a snowy Allianz Arena, only for Mbappe to have the final say in an enthralling first-leg contest.
Dominant reigning Bundesliga champions Bayern mustered a whopping 31 shots, only to come out on the losing side at home for the first time since November 2019.
"Obviously, our opponents scored three goals from their few chances and we scored too few but the way we played was impressive," Flick said afterwards. "We could have gotten a good result but we were not efficient enough.
"I do not like to lose but I am satisfied with how we played. The team fought on the pitch for the entire 90 minutes."
He added: "Unfortunately, we were not as decisive in front of goal as we normally are.”
Flick’s PSG counterpart Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, was thrilled with the character shown by his side as they bounced back from an eighth Ligue 1 defeat of the season against Lille at the weekend.
However, he is expecting another stern test in the home leg in Paris next week.
"I am happy with the result and the attitude of the team, who found themselves in difficult situations against the best side in Europe,” Pochettino said.
“We need to congratulate the players for their sacrifice and we want to repeat this kind of performance.
"Ninety more minutes to play. It is a good result but the return leg will be difficult. We know that.”
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