Michael Olise and Luis Díaz: Europe’s best wing duo preview Atalanta tie

Bayern head to Bergamo on Tuesday as they face Atalanta in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie looking to get into a good position for the return fixture back in Munich. Vincent Kompany’s team can turn to Europe’s best wing duo when they go to Italy. Michael Olise (34) and Luis Díazz (33) have an exceptional total of 67 goals and assists between them in all competitions this season. No other pair of wingers across the continent can match that. They have now spoken to fcbayern.com ahead of the knockout stage.

Interview with Olise and Díaz

The France and Colombia internationals both stand in the top seven for combined goals and assists in Europe this season. That list is headed by a considerable margin by teammate Harry Kane (50), leading Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé (43) and Erling Haaland of Manchester City (36). Should Bayern advance in Europe, they will face one of those two in the quarter-finals. But first, Olise and Díaz – fourth and fifth respectively on the list – have their eyes set on Atalanta.

“It’s really clear, we need to show our best side and win,” Olise said in one of his rare interviews as he looks towards the business end of the season. Counterpart Díaz sees Atalanta as a “big club” and a “difficult opponent”, expecting “hard work”. “You’ve got nothing to lose in the Champions League. We’ll fight to win and try to get a good result in the first leg,” the summer signing insisted.

The motivation for both wide men is evident in their interviews. You can see the excitement in their eyes as they talk about going into the Champions League’s knockout rounds. “We need to show our best performance in every game. You can no longer play any game on standby mode,” Olise stated. Standby? It’s a mode the 24-year-old knows very little about. He always gives his all. It’s the only way you can be Europe’s top provider with 21 assists this season. As for Díaz, he insisted that, “It’ll be harder now compared to the league phase, because it’s the best teams left now.”

Do Bayern have a knockout advantage?

One thing the pair are pleased about ahead of the tie is that they have the decisive second leg at home at the Allianz Arena. Having finished second in the league phase, the Bavarians would in fact have home advantage all the way to the semi-finals, if they get there. “It’s definitely important. If we win the first leg, then the opponent needs to come to the Allianz Arena and win, which is seriously hard,” Olise claimed. “And if we happen to lose the first leg, then we’ve got the full support of our fans at home in the second. They push you the whole time. You sense them behind you and they put so much pressure on the opposition. It’s extra motivation,” the France international explained. Díaz is also aware of the significance of home advantage in the second leg: “When we analyse the first legs and focus on the second legs, then playing at home second is really valuable.”

Both Díaz, whose 20 goals in all competitions is bettered only by Marseille’s Mason Greenwood (24) among wingers across Europe’s top five leagues, and Olise want to continue to lead the way with their performances in the Champions League. Both dream of winning big titles this season, with Bayern well on track in all three competitions. What makes them so confident of doing so come the spring? “We’re a family. Our greatest strength is our togetherness. We’re all on the same page. We have a tight, hard-working, humble group, an incredible set of coaches and an incredible group of players,” Lucho insisted.

“What makes us so strong this season?” Olise asks back before answering himself: “Definitely our coach, with his plans, his ideas. Everyone knows what to do in every situation. We’re all on the same page.” He believes that anything is possible under Kompany. The Frenchman also points out the team’s mentality, plus the fact that “it helps that we’ve had a year together. Every one of us always gives their best. We’re not a team of individuals but we all work as a collective for a common goal.”

The pair both came to Munich from English football, Olise arriving from Crystal Palace in 2024 and Díaz following 12 months later from Liverpool. They’ve both spoken of feeling at home in Bavaria on and off the pitch. “You can’t forget that we’re playing great football, that we’re technically very good, that we’re not just playing well in attack but also in our defending,” insisted the Colombian, who’s always a bundle of energy at both ends of the pitch. “It’s important in a team to have a foundation, a very close group if you want to achieve great things.” He feels he has that now at Bayern.