As it happened: Bayern Munich vs. Tottenham Hotspur — Coupang Play Series friendly

Football

As it happened: Bayern Munich vs. Tottenham Hotspur — Coupang Play Series friendly

Published: 03 Aug. 2024, 19:08 Updated: 03 Aug. 2024, 22:20

TREVOR TREHARNE
trevor.treharne@joongang.co.kr

Korean teammates Son Heung-min from Tottenham Hotspur, left, and Kim Min-jae from Bayern Munich will face each other at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday evening. [YONHAP]

FULL TIME: Bayern 2 Spurs 1. Bayern had 22 shots, 11 of which were on target. Spurs had 11 shots, four on target. The battle of the Korean superstars — Spurs' Son and Bayern's Kim — has been won by Kim this time. Spurs were greatly improved in the second half, perhaps taking advantage of Bayern making so many changes. Overall, the scoreline is a fair reflection of the teams' performances. We will have a full report live soon. Thanks for joining us.

94 mins: Zaragoza, who has looked threatening since coming on for Bayern, has another shot on the right hand side, but it's saved again.

92 mins: Some very tired legs out there now. Rusty from the summer and tired from the heat. Possession switches between the two teams, but there is no goal threat at the minute.

Bayern Munich's Nestory Irankunda shoots during a Coupang Play Series match against Tottenham Hotspur at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [YONHAP]

90 mins: There will be five minutes of added time.

88 mins: Bayern have two chances back-to-back. First, it is Irankunda who has another low shot saved, then Aznou finds himself in some space in the box, but he can only drag his shot wide of the Spurs goal.

86 mins: Irankunda has a chance for Bayern. He breaks on the left, his fresh legs showing, but his shot is saved low.

85 mins: We're into full "it's the final five minutes of a preseason in 30 degree heat" mode. Spurs knock the ball around, but the threat is minimal.

83 mins: Starting from Bissouma, Spurs move the ball forward. It finally makes its way to Moore in the box, but he loses his balance and can't get a shot away. Bayern hanging on, which seemed unthinkable in the first half.

Tottenham Hotspur's Pedro Porro, center, celebrates scoring a goal during a Coupang Play Series match against Bayern Munich at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

81 mins: The attendance is confirmed to be 63, 496. Another massive crowd. As for the game, it's looking like a typical preseason now. Calm, with very few chances. Spurs have 10 minutes to find that goal.

79 mins: Spurs are now dominating possession as they hunt to level the score. No way through yet though. For Bayern, Stanisic is replaced by Nkili.

78 mins: Spurs take off their goalscorer as Porro departs for Abbott.

75 mins: Werner is straight into the action. He takes a mid-range shot from outside the box, but Ulreich gathers it easily.

72 mins: More changes and Son is coming off for Spurs. Skipp will captain Spurs now. Another big cheer for Son as he comes off though. He is replaced by Werner. Also off are Kulusevski, Johnson and Vicario. On is Lankshear, Moore and Austin.

71 mins: Another cooling break for the players.

69 mins: All Spurs at the minute. Bayern have taken off a lot of talent and the Spurs changes look much more impactful. Bergvall has a corner on the left, but it comes to nothing.

68 mins: Bayern make a double change. The impressive Tel and Boey are off. On comes Irankunda and Mazraoui.

Bayern Munich's Leon Goretzka, left, celebrates scoring a goal during a Coupang Play Series match against Tottenham Hotspur at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

67 mins: CLOSE! OK, Spurs mean business now. This time the chance falls to Bergvall. It's a great chance on the edge of the box, he has plenty of space, but his shot is just wide. Spurs looking much, much better this half.

65 mins: GOAL! Bayern 2 Spurs 1. Porro with the goal. The full-back was such an attacking threat last season and this is a cracking goal. It comes from almost nowhere. Porro picks up the ball on the right-hand side, looks up and smashes the ball from outside the box. Ulreich is well beaten in the Bayern goal. Game on!

63 mins: Spurs are starting to look frustrated. It might be a preseason, but they can't be happy with this performance so far. The game has slowed somewhat since that second goal. Spurs make three changes. Off is Sarr, Spence and Davies. On is Devine, Donley and Skipp.

61 mins: Movement on the Spurs bench, fresh legs are on their way it seems.

59 mins: Spurs have a three versus two break with Son on the left. He passes the ball inside Royal, but his attempt is blocked. A real opening for Spurs that.

57 mins: That second goal had been coming. Spurs, who have the attacking talent to get back into the game, must now regroup.

55 mins: GOAL! Bayern 2 Spurs 0. Tel surges forward on the left, he cuts inside and feeds the ball to Goretzka. He takes a shot, but Vicario saves. However, that only sent the ball back to Goretzka who scores at the second time of asking.

K-pop girl group NewJeans perform during the halftime show of the Coupang Play Series match between Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

54 mins: More changes for Bayern. Kim Min-jae is coming off and he receives a huge cheer from the Seoul crowd. Dier comes on instead. Aznou is also on for Guerreiro.

52 mins: Zaragoza has Bayern's first chance of the second half. He runs into the Spurs box on the left. His shot was blocked, but he got the ball back. However, he can't get a second shot away and Spurs clear.

47 mins: CLOSE! Spurs have the first big chance of the second half. Son picks up the ball on the left of the Bayern box. His shot is deflected, but it falls to Kulusevski on the edge of the box, but his shot is narrowly wide.

Kickoff: Bayern get the second half underway in Seoul. Can Spurs improve? Can Bayern kill off the game? Neuer has been replaced by Ulreich in the Bayern goal. Kim Min-jae is now Bayern's captain. There are six changes for Bayern. Off is Muller, Pavlovic, Vidvic, Gnabry, Kimich and as mentioned Neuer. On are Licina, Goretzka, Laimer, Palhinha, Zaragoza and Ulreich. For Spurs, they make three changes. Off is Maddison, Gray and Dragusin. On is Bissouma, Bergvall and Royal.

Halftime show: NewJeans open with "Attention." This is going to temporarily going to be a K-pop minute-by-minute. We're in Korea, after all. Then "Hype Boy" is next. NewJeans are in full kits and pink boots. They've stayed neutral though, it's not a Bayern or Spurs kit. It's a "NewJeans kit," I guess. "ETA" is the next song. NewJeans have been joined by what looks like a million backing dancers, all dressed in white kits. The last song is "Super Shy," of course. In this context super shy refers to Spurs' ability to have a shot.

Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heumg-min reacts during a Coupang Play Series match against Bayern Munich at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

Halftime! Bayern 1 Spurs 0. There is no question who looked better there. Bayern had 11 shots to Spurs' two. Not a single Spurs shot was on target. Gnabry and Tel were the main threats for Bayern. Kulusevski and Son seemed the most likely to create something for Spurs. Anyway, it's time for the halftime show from NewJeans.

46 mins: Bayern are still building up play at the end of the second half here, but play has slowed and it's largely possession without real threat. The players are looking a little jaded.

44 mins: Spurs finally manage to clear their lines. They work the ball up the pitch and Son manages to get a shot away from inside the box, but it is blocked and then cleared by Kim Min-jae.

43 mins: The ball then suddenly breaks to Guerreiro, but his shot is saved by Vicario. Spurs are under the pump at the end of the half here. Bayern must be wondering how they have failed to add a second, or even third, goal.

43 mins: Vidovic gets some space on the left and his cross into the box is met by Tel. However his shot is wide.

42 mins: Kimmich takes the free kick, but it is cleared.

41 mins: Bayern are knocking the ball around in the hope of finding another gap in the Spurs defense. Gnabry is fouled by Spence on the right, who receives the first yellow card of the game.

Bayern Munich's Mathys Tel shoots during a Coupang Play Series match against Tottenham Hotspur at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

38 mins. CLOSE AGAIN! This time it is Gnabry, who was on the edge of the box, shifts to his left foot, but his curling shot is just wide of the bottom left corner of Spurs' goal. Bayern are knocking on the door here, can Spurs get to halftime and regroup?

37 mins. CLOSE! Bayern's Tel gets the ball on the left of the Spurs box and cuts inside, but his shot is too high.

36 mins: Kulusevski breaks on the left again, but his cross is blocked by Stanisic and Bayern win the ball back.

34 mins: Spurs are playing the high-press well and Kim Min-jae nearly gets himself in some trouble. He manages to pass back to Neuer in Bayern's goal and Bayern are able to progress up the pitch. Will be interesting to see how Spurs' high-press looks in the second half as the heat takes its toll.

32 mins: Kim Min-jae pushes Kulusevski, who seems to be in some pain, but he's up again.

29 mins: Muller picks up the ball and runs at the Spurs defense. He plays a neat pass to Tel on the left who attempts to cross into the box. Son of all people is there is clear the ball.

28 mins: We're back underway.

27 mins: Cooling break! The players stop for drinks for some relief from Seoul's brutal summer humidity. It's well-earned too, both teams have attacked and surged into the box at every opportunity.

Tottenham Hotspur forward Dejan Kulusevski, left, in action against Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae during a Coupang Play Series match at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

24 mins: Guess who? Gnabry is again allowed space on the edge of the box, his shot is deflected and it's a corner. The corner meets the head of Muller, but it's right at Vicario who gathers the ball easily. Spurs need to get a handle on Gnabry.

23 mins: Gnabry, once again, is on the ball. He cuts inside, but his shot is blocked and the ball is cleared.

22 mins: Spurs' Gray runs into the box, but the youngster loses control of the ball and it's going to be a Bayern goal kick.

19 mins: Bayern have back-to-back corners, the second of which is met by the head of Korea's Kim Min-jae. The ball goes well over though. Both Koreans have now had chances in the opening 20 minutes. How the crowd would love one of them to score tonight.

Bayern Munich's Gabriel Vidovic, left, celebrates scoring a goal during a Coupang Play Series match against Tottenham Hotspur at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

17 mins: We're at the other end again, with Bayern's Tel breaking into the box on the left and shooting. It's pretty much straight at Vicario and the keeper palms the ball away. This game looks to have plenty of goals in it.

16 mins: Spurs' Spence, roaming up the pitch from left-back, surges into the box, but he is tripped. The referee sees it differently and no foul is given.

13 mins: Guerreiro breaks on the left for Bayern, but is caught offside. The game has settled down a little and it's hard to see that early tempo being maintained in this heat.

12 mins: Bayern break and once again it's Gnabry on the right. This time his mazy run comes to nothing and Spurs clear. Gnabry is the main man so far.

Bayern Munich's Serge Gnabry, left, shoots during a Coupang Play Series match against Spurs at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

11 mins: Spurs win another corner but it is easily cleared again. Spurs will need to improve these set pieces before the season starts.

9 mins: OK, Spurs are growing into this game. Kulusevski finds himself on the left of the Bayern box and shoots, but Stanisic blocks and it's going to be a Spurs corner. The corner is easily cleared though.

7 mins: A slight opening for Son, he picks up the ball on the edge of the Bayern box and with no hesitation shoots. The curling shot is high and wide, much to the disappointment of the Seoul crowd.

5 mins: There was a lot of criticism of how Spurs defended last season and this pattern has returned this preseason as Bayern continue to attack. Vicario gathers the ball this time with Gnabry looking dangerous again.

Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae, left, shakes hands with Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min before the kick-off of the Coupang Play Series match at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

4 mins: GOAL! Bayern 1 Spurs 0. Gnabry jumps on a moment of hesitation by Spurs goalkeeper Vicario, the ball is half cleared and Vidovic arrives at the edge of the box and fires home through Vicario's legs. It has been a very open start to the game.

2 mins: Spurs reply with Johnson breaking down the right, but he can't get the ball into the box and it's a goal kick.

1 min: A lively start with Bayern on the front foot and Spurs under pressure. Muller passes to Gnabry at the back post, but he fires well over.

Kickoff: Spurs get us underway! Spurs are in the traditional white, while Bayern have their away jersey which the Bayern website claims is "anthracite" in color. It's dark anyway. K-pop girl group NewJeans were there for the kickoff ceremony. They will be back for the halftime show.

Preamble: Annyeong, hello and guten abend from Seoul. Welcome to our live coverage of the clash between Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Saturday evening. The game is part of the Coupang Play Series — an annual preseason exhibition game series organized by Korean e-commerce company Coupang.

The teams are in...

It's warm in Seoul this evening. It is expected to be 29 degrees Celsius (84 degrees Fahrenheit) at kickoff at 8 p.m. (local time) and will stay around that throughout the game. There is 63 percent humidity, so that may take some of the energy out of the game.

For readers overseas, 8 p.m. in Seoul is midday in London and 1 p.m. in Munich.

Here's what our sports reporter Mary Yang had to say from outside the stadium: "Thousands of football fans gathered at what carried the energy of a festival outside Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul hours before two of the biggest European football clubs were set to kick off for the first of two back-to-back preseason games. People carried a mix of hand-held paper and electric fans, with many holding frozen water bottles and donning a variety of sun-blocking hats, as they joined the crowd waiting to enter the stadium for an exhibition game between Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich in the final match of the 2024 Coupang Play Series."

You can read Mary's full report here.