Source: Alamy Stock Photo

Early Warning for Tottenham with Heavy Defeat to Bayern

Bayern Munich, the German champions, inflicted a heavy defeat on Tottenham Hotspur, the English winners of last season’s UEFA Europa League, thrashing them 4-0 in a friendly match at the Allianz Arena in Munich. It was Spurs’ final outing before taking on Paris Saint-Germain, the European champions, in the UEFA Super Cup.

In front of 72,000 spectators, Tottenham — who had lifted the Europa League trophy with a 1-0 victory over fellow English side Manchester United on May 21 — conceded in the first half a goal from their former star striker Harry Kane, after a pass from Frenchman Michael Olise in the 12th minute.

Kane, Tottenham’s all-time leading scorer with 280 goals in 435 appearances, had joined the Bavarian side in a €100 million move in the summer of 2023. He came close to doubling his tally just two minutes later when Portuguese midfielder João Palhinha — who had only joined Spurs on Sunday from Bayern on a one-season loan — conceded a penalty. However, Kane slipped while taking the spot-kick, sending the ball over the bar. It was the first time he had failed to convert a penalty since missing one against France in the quarter-finals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

At the start of the second half, fellow Frenchman Kingsley Coman doubled the lead with a superb left-footed strike after Austrian Konrad Laimer had won the ball back in midfield (61’). Teenage substitutes Lennard Karl (17) and Swedish forward Yuna Kusi-Asare (18) added the third and fourth goals in the 74th and 80th minutes, respectively.

This was the first defeat in six friendly matches for Danish manager Thomas Frank, who replaced Australian Ange Postecoglou despite the latter guiding Spurs to their long-awaited continental title, ending a 17-year trophy drought.

The loss comes after a respectable run of pre-season results, with Tottenham having beaten Reading 2-0 and Arsenal 1-0, drawn 2-2 with Wycombe, played out a goalless draw with Luton Town, and drawn 1-1 with Newcastle United.

Nevertheless, this setback is undoubtedly a warning sign for the North London club, who also lost their captain and top scorer, South Korean Son Heung-min, to Los Angeles FC after ten years in the white shirt.

The Spurs will now need to regroup before facing Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, who began training on Wednesday in preparation for the showdown with Tottenham. PSG’s players had only recently returned from a post-season break, following their 3-0 defeat to Chelsea in the FIFA Club World Cup final, with most of their key stars having spent their holidays in France or abroad.

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