Galatasaray – Bayern Munich : Preview & Prediction
It looked as if Galatasaray would struggle to fight for qualification when they were drawn in UEFA Champions League Group A alongside Copenhagen, Manchester United and their opponents here, Bayern Munich. However, a memorable 3-2 win at Old Trafford last time out, combined with a comeback from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 against Copenhagen on the opening day, has given them a solid platform to progress beyond the group stage of this competition for the first time in ten years.
Those matches have helped the Turkish giants to an impressive 17-game unbeaten run in all competitions this season (G14, E3), the most recent of which was a 2-1 home win over bitter rivals Beşiktaş to maintain their place at the top of the Süper Lig. Confidence that they can maintain that run should be high here, but no win against a Bundesliga visitor in Istanbul since a 1-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in the 1992/93 UEFA Cup (E5, P3) illustrates the difficulty of the task ahead.
Bayern were predicted to finish as group winners and reach the knockout stages for the 15th consecutive season with relative ease, and two wins from two so far only confirms those expectations. After beating Manchester United at home on matchday one, they picked up a 2-1 away win in Copenhagen, a victory that continues a trend of scoring at least two goals in all of their official away matches so far this season (G5, E1).
The reigning German champions also scored at least two goals on their last visit to Turkey, when they beat Galatasaray’s neighbors Beşiktaş 3-1 during the 2017/18 edition of this competition. That extended their unbeaten record against Turkish teams to six matches (G5, E1), and two of those matches were against their hosts here 51 years ago (G1, E1).
Key battle: Two old Tottenham teammates will clash here, as Galatasaray’s Davinson Sanchez will try to keep Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane at bay. The center back has picked up a yellow card in each of his last two games for club and country, while Kane has scored three goals in his last two games at domestic and international level.
Key stat: Galatasaray have lost just one of their last ten home matches in all European competitions (G6, E3).
Galatasaray – Bayern Munich : Betting Tips
Draw Odds: 4.25
