Bayern boss is still ‘shocked’

Berlin – Bayern Munich head coach Hansi Flick (above) was “shocked” as the holders crashed out of the German Cup on Wednesday after defeat at second division Holstein Kiel, who won a nail-biting penalty shoot-out 6-5 as the second round tie finished 2-2 after extra-time.

“It’s a shock. We are enormously disappointed,” Flick told Sky.

“It’s all the more annoying that we conceded an equaliser which made it 2-2 in the last second (of normal time). Congratulations to Kiel.

“We have to put it behind us and do things better.”

Bayern forward Thomas Mueller said the defeat was “brutal”.

This is the first time Bayern have been knocked out of the cup by a non-Bundesliga club since losing to then fourth-tier Magdeburg in 2000/01.

After Bayern midfielder Marc Roca was the first player to miss with his team’s sixth penalty, Kiel’s Fin Bartels converted the winning spot-kick to spark wild celebrations.

The upset means this is the first time European champions Bayern have been eliminated from a cup competition since Flick took charge in November 2019.

Bayern were 2-1 up thanks to goals by Serge Gnabry and Leroy Sane, either side of a superb Bartels strike, before a last-gasp header by Kiel captain Hauke Wahl in the 95th minute took the game to extra time, then penalties.

“Even if it sounds stupid after a cup defeat against an underdog from Kiel – luck wasn’t on our side,” said Mueller.

“It’s certainly not FC Bayern’s best phase,” he added as the European champions also crashed to a 3-2 league defeat at Borussia Moenchengladbach last Friday.

“Being knocked out is brutal, we have to let that sink in first.”

The German FA gave Bayern permission to postpone the cup tie from late December.

Bayern fielded a near-full strength side with only top-scoring striker Robert Lewandowski, who made a second-half cameo, and centre-back Jerome Boateng starting on the bench.

Lewandowski’s stand-in Gnabry gave Bayern the lead after only 14 minutes.

Kiel caused nervous looks in Bayern’s ranks when Bartels put them level before Sane restored the lead just after the break.

As heavy snow started to fall, Kiel kept plugging away and were rewarded with the equaliser five minutes into added time. –