How Bayern's complacency saw Benfica beat them at the Club World Cup

Benfica overcame Bayern in the Club World Cup
Benfica overcame Bayern in the Club World Cup AA/ABACA / Abaca Press / Profimedia
With Bayern Munich's progression into the Club World Cup knockout stages assured before they took to the pitch to play Benfica at the Bank of America Stadium, it's perhaps no surprise that Vincent Kompany left several regular starters on the bench.

They included Michael Olise and Jamal Musiala, who were tied for the CWC's top scorer in the competition so far, each finding the net three times.

The last time the two teams met was in the 2024/25 Champions League, and on that occasion, the Bavarians came out on top with a slender 1-0 win.

On this occasion, it was the Portuguese giants that did all the early running, and they'd already had two shots on target through Angel Di Maria and Renato Sanches before Andreas Schjelderup put them ahead in the 13th minute - unlucky for Bayern.

Although the Bundesliga side then went on to have 78.2% possession leading up to the 30-minute mark, it took until the 23rd minute of the game for them to have their first shot of any description, Tom Bischof seeing his effort blocked.

No shots on target for Bayern before the break

Leading into half-time, Benfica continued to take the game to their opponents with Di Maria having another shot - his 10th of the tournament, the joint most of any player - whilst Bayern still hadn't managed one on target before the official blew his whistle for the break.

Momentum shift during the Benfica vs Bayern Munich game
Momentum shift during the Benfica vs Bayern Munich gameOpta by StatsPerform

Kompany's reaction was to send on the big guns in a triple change at half-time, Harry Kane, Olise and Joshua Kimmich coming on for Serge Gnabry, Joao Palhinha and Bischof.

Five minutes after the break and within 26 seconds of each other, Bayern had their first shots on target via Leroy Sane and Thomas Muller, but they still couldn't find their way through a resolute defence.

Their 75.9% possession spoke to how one-sided the match had become, though Benfica held firm even when Sane continued to pepper their goal.

Indeed, his five attempted shots in the game were the joint-highest for a Bayern player at the CWC.

Clear where the game was won and lost

Looking at the game in more detail, it's clear to pinpoint where the match was won and lost.

For a start, despite having almost double the amount of shots across the 90 minutes (13 to seven), Bayern still only managed to get four on target - the same as Benfica - which evidences just how wasteful Kompany's forward line were on the day.

More so when you consider that eight of those 13 were from inside the box.

Benfica vs Bayern Munich Match Stats
Benfica vs Bayern Munich Match StatsOpta by StatsPerform

Though the Bavarians led their opponents a merry dance in terms of possession (73% to 27%) and passes attempted (687 to 257), and could be said to have controlled a majority of the game as a result, when it came down to it, Benfica were the team that took advantage.

Just one less dribble than Bayern's total of 18 in the game, the Portuguese actually completed more of theirs successfully (47% to 38.9%), as well as winning a bigger percentage of one-on-one duels (57.1% to 42.9%) and aerial battles (61.5% to 38.5%).

Otamendi and Dahl deserve special mention

More tackles attempted and won, and more interceptions made are a clear indicator that Bayern just weren't up for the fight, and that doesn't bode well for the remainder of the tournament.

Benfica captain, Nicolas Otamendi, and fellow defender, Samuel Dahl, deserve a special mention thanks to their excellence in keeping Kane et al at bay.

Kompany might well begrudgingly concede too that his ex-teammate was a cut above, and he was certainly looking forward to the meeting ahead of the match.

Vincent Kompany of Bayern on the sidelines during the match
Vincent Kompany of Bayern on the sidelines during the matchSven Hoppe / dpa via Reuters Connect

The Argentine won eight of his nine one-on-ones and both aerial duels, whilst Dahl's winning back of possession on 10 separate occasions was the best on show.

Sane and Muller losing possession on 17 and 16 occasions, respectively, was another standout stat which should open everyone's eyes ahead of what's sure to be a tough test at the weekend.

Bayern didn't take the game seriously

Aside from Muller's awful 54.2% pass completion stat, the majority of Bayern's players posted figures of 90% and above.

For example, Dayot Upemecano's 97.4% - thanks to completing 74 of 76 passes attempted - should've helped to ensure that Bayern were not only the winning side, but were comfortable in their victory.

Furthermore, 35 touches in the Benfica box were more than twice as many as the Portuguese side's 11, and yet it led to absolutely nothing. Not even the hint of a goal.

Bayern's passing network vs Benfica
Bayern's passing network vs BenficaOpta by StatsPerform / Sven Hoppe/dpa via Reuters Connect

One, therefore, can't escape the notion that, with the prior knowledge of qualification as well as the relatively recent previous win over Benfica in mind, the Bavarians just didn't take this game as seriously as they should have. 

Even taking into account that Kompany had wanted to hold back some of his major stars for the latter stages of the tournament, to control a game to the extent his side did and to still end up on the losing side with only four shots at goal... there's no other reasonable conclusion that can be arrived at than some of Bayern's players weren't too bothered about what happened - and that is unforgivable at this level.

As a result of Benfica's win, they'll now face Chelsea in the Round of 16, whilst Bayern will play against Brazilian giants, Flamengo.

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