Thomas Tuchel, who is coaching FC Bayern, commented on their recent game: “We had the advantage of an entire week to prepare for this game. One of our strategies was to adopt a very offensive mode of defense, in an attempt to disrupt Leverkusen’s rhythm. However, we made some incredibly poor decisions, particularly in the moments after we regained possession of the ball. These mistakes had a drastic effect on our confidence.”
In regards to the first goal, Tuchel stated: “We, of course, accept responsibility for that. We had Sacha (Boey, Anm. d. Red) on the field for his speed. But it seemed like everyone was just not fully present at that moment. As a result, we conceded a goal that could have easily been avoided.”
Thomas Müller, a player from FC Bayern, also shared his thoughts: “What I feel is missing – and here I’ll quote our Oliver Kahn – is a certain boldness and sense of freedom. We have a certain mentality when playing our game, particularly when we have possession of the ball. During training sessions, we display much better strategies because we play with courage and with a strong presence.”
Müller had this to say about criticism directed towards coach Tuchel: “We had enough internationally renowned players on the field. There’s no need to lay all the blame on the coach.”
Xabi Alonso, the coach of Bayer Leverkusen, spoke highly of his team’s performance: “We did an excellent job. The discipline and compactness of the team were commendable. The overall performance was superb, and the commitment shown by the boys was very high. All the players gave top-notch performances. We created enough opportunities and barely gave any away.”
Robert Andrich, a player from Bayer Leverkusen, shared his perspective: “From the initial minute to the final whistle, we pushed hard. We displayed good control of the ball and our goal-front performance was very impressive. Bayern’s formation took us by surprise a little bit.”