Reaction to Champions League match against PSG - Vincent Kompany: 'It was hard work and emotions'

FC Bayern came out on top of a thrilling Champions League game against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, winning 2-1 in the French capital. After a brace and red card for Luis Diaz in the first half, Bayern had to play the entire second period against the European champions a man down but held on to claim all three points at the Parc des Princes. “We saw in the first who the better team was. It’s then not easy with 10 men, and the second half was a real fight. But on the whole we did well,” said captain Manuel Neuer, who was named Player of the Match by UEFA. “We’re in first place and have Arsenal next up. We can again see there where we stand. But today was excellent by us, especially in the first half,” added Joshua Kimmich. fcbayern.com rounds up the reaction from Paris.

Reaction to the match against Paris Saint-Germain

Vincent Kompany: “The most important thing is we hope that [Achraf] Hakimi recovers quickly. It was hard work and emotions today – those are the feelings we had after the game. In the end, we did it together. We obviously would’ve liked to have kept playing in the second half like we’d done in the first, but you get games where things change through situations like the red card. I also want us to enjoy it when we have to defend. We work on it a lot in training. That’s why it didn’t surprise me that we did it well. The first half was really pleasing. In the second half we had to play differently. We know that the Champions League isn’t decided yet, but today was a really important three points for us.”

Manuel Neuer: “It was obviously a completely different game in the second half. We saw in the first who the better team was. It’s then not easy with 10 men, and the second half was a real fight. But we often train for situations like this – one team having more players – and it’s about defending really well. Today we showed that we can do that. We wanted to be compact and try to hold up the ball up front. That was tough because we were a man down. It wasn’t easy for the forwards, including Harry Kane, to win the ball against three opposition players or win a free-kick. But on the whole we did well.”

Joshua Kimmich: “We may not have had most of the possession in the first half but we really hurt Paris. We were really at it, had lots of good chances and were a physical presence. I’d say it was one of the most intense first halves of my career – by both teams, a constant man-on-man game. It felt even more intense in the second half. We’re in first place and have Arsenal next up. We can again see there where we stand. But today was excellent by us, especially in the first half.”

Jonathan Tah: “The first half was brilliant by us, the way we approached the game, the intensity we played with and how many chances we created. In the second half we then had to suffer together, defend together. You get moments like that in a season. It’s not typical for us to have to defend so deep, but we showed today we can do it, that we’re there for each other and ready. It really wasn’t easy, but the most important thing was that we stuck together as a team, that we believed that we could get through it.”

Reaction from Paris Saint-Germain

Luis Enrique (head coach): “Bayern were better than us in the first half. They were more present on the pitch and created more chances. We handed them some gifts. We had a man advantage in the second half and did a good job. We created lots of chances and could’ve got an equaliser. But we need to accept today that the opposition were better. The season isn’t over. We’ll build up our level again.”

Read more about the game in our report: