The much anticipated resumption of the Champions League by Chelsea was spoiled in Munich, when Harry Kane scored twice to give Bayern 3-1 victory at the Allianz arena.
The stadium is also a special one to Chelsea, who won their first European title there in 2012. This time, however, it was painful memories. The young team led by Enzo Maresca was down by two goals, but Cole Palmer gave them hope, but careless defense gave the edge to Bayern.
It all unraveled quickly. In the 20 th minute, Michael Olise crossed the ball dangerously and Trevoh Chalobah was forced to score an own goal. Only seven minutes later, Moises Caicedo blundered in the box and Harry Kane, coolly taking his time converted at the spot to put it 2-0.
Chelsea did respond. After Caicedo had retrieved the ball in the central field of play and handed it to Palmer, who made his 100th appearance in the club, it was then combined with Malo Gusto and he got a nice goal on Manuel Neuer. The Blues pressed and Maresca ranted on the sidelines when the Bayern Jonathan Tah got away with a foul against Joao Pedro.
The two were wobbling at the rear, though Bayern was ahead. After the break, goalkeeper, Robert Sanchez, blocked Kane and Olise, yet the efforts by Chelsea did not last long as Gusto made an error that gave Harry Kane a golden opportunity in the box. He was not wrong, and he buried his second of the night in his usual style.
Bayern manager Vincent Kompany had eulogized the hunger of Harry Kane, and Maresca also acknowledged that their mistakes on the defensive side were costly. The defeat notwithstanding, Chelsea displayed some signs of hope. They will have to come up with a narrower defense once they start playing Benfica at home in the next group-stage game.
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