Bundesliga
Nagelsmann: "Champions League never unimportant for Bayern"
Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann is convinced that his side can bounce back from their defeat at Augsburg with a strong showing in their UEFA Champions League game against Dynamo Kyiv on Tuesday.
Bayern slipped to a 2-1 loss away to Augsburg last Friday, and they have now travelled with a depleted squad to face Kyiv in Ukraine.
The six-time European champions have already qualified for the knockout stage with two games to go in Group E, but Nagelsmann says Tuesday's game is still significant.
"The Champions League is never unimportant, particularly not for Bayern Munich," the coach said at his pre-match press conference on Monday.
"We don't have pressure in terms of results anymore, outside of the normal expectations that are always there for Bayern in every game. The things that we didn't do well in Augsburg and in the weeks before that, these are things that of course we want to improve in Kyiv and to take the next step."
Watch: Bayern were stunned by Augsburg on Matchday 12
Bayern are almost certain to finish top of their section, something that will be confirmed if they avoid defeat against Kyiv or if Barcelona don't beat Benfica in Tuesday's other group game.
The visitors have injury doubts over midfielder Marcel Sabitzer and winger Kingsley Coman, while several other players - including suspended defender Dayot Upamecano - will definitely be missing.
Despite the current hectic schedule, the Bundesliga leaders are likely to once again rely on their talisman Robert Lewandowski in attack. The Polish striker, who was named as the 2021 Golden Player this week, scored twice in Bayern's 5-0 home win over Kyiv in September.
Lewandowski also had a hat-trick in the 5-2 victory over Benfica in Bayern's last match in the Champions League, meaning the 33-year-old now has 81 goals in 100 appearances in the competition.
"The significance of Lewy is obvious," Nagelsmann said. "Managing his workload is important... he has an incredibly good physique, and works so hard on it. He's really fit physically.
"He's experienced too, and knows when to spare himself for five or six minutes in a game - where he doesn't sprint after every single ball - so that he'll be ready for the decisive situations."
Another player in good shape for the nine-in-a-row German champions this season is Leroy Sane. The winger has eight goals and 10 assists in all competitions, having so far scored four times and made four more goals in the Champions League.
Sane, who had a goal and an assist against Kyiv last time out, is happy to have rediscovered his form after suffering a cruciate ligament in August 2019.
"I try to turn the negative energy into positive energy and lift myself up," the 25-year-old explained on Monday. "I feel really healthy. I'm in a good place at the moment and feel very fit. I'm just trying to use this momentum in the next few games and to continue in the same way."