Toothless Bayern slump to defeat in Villarreal
Arnaut Danjuma's early opener proved the difference as Bayern München slipped to a 1-0 defeat against Villarreal.
Bayern München fell to a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of Villarreal in the first Champions League quarterfinal clash between the two sides on Wednesday evening.
Julian Nagelsmann's side came into the tie as favorites, but failed to live up to the billing in the first leg at Estadio de la Cerámica.
It only took Villarreal eight minutes to break the deadlock through Arnaut Danjuma. A shot from Dani Parejo was heading wide, but Danjuma was in the right place at the right time to direct the ball past Manuel Neuer.
Bayern were a shadow of their usual dominant selves and struggled to create clear-cut chances, especially in the first half.
Villarreal looked more likely to score a second and had the ball in the net again just before the break as Francis Coquelin's effort sailed over Manuel Neuer's head and into the net, but the goal was ruled out as the midfielder was adjudged to be in an offside position.
The home side continued where they left off after the break and nearly doubled the lead when Gerard Moreno's thumping shot hit the post eight minutes into the second half. Four minutes later, Alphonso Davies was forced into making a superb block to stop a shot from Moreno, who found himself in a dangerous position once more.
Moreno was then gifted a glorious chance of making it 2-0 just over the hour mark. The Spanish forward intercepted a pass from Manuel Neuer, who was far out of his goal, but he couldn't hit the target.
Bayern then managed to take a bit more control of the contest and managed to test Villarreal goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli for the first time in the 66th minute when Alphonso Davies hit a shot straight at him.
As the second half progressed, the Bavarians threw everything forward in search of a late equaliser, allowing space for Alfonso Pedraza at the other end, but the second-half substitute blasted a shot wide from a promising position.
Ultimately, it wasn't to be for Bayern, who could have few complaints about the result. Villarreal now have one foot in the semifinals, but the Bavarians still have every chance of going through if they show a different face in the second leg at Allianz Arena in Munich in six days.