Bayern Munich on Thursday won the FIFA Club World Cup final in Qatar, as Benjamin Pavard’s second-half winner sealed a 1-0 victory over Mexico’s Tigres UANL, the German side claiming a “six pack” of titles within 12 months.
Pavard’s close-range tap-in was enough to give European champions Bayern their sixth title in quick succession.
It is the eighth consecutive year that the UEFA Champions League winners have gone on to claim the Club World Cup, as Bayern follow in the footsteps of last year’s champions Liverpool.
Photo: Reuters
Bayern are the second side to win all six available titles within a year after Barcelona in 2008-2009.
Hansi Flick’s men had already won the Champions League, Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, UEFA Super Cup and DFL-Supercup.
“It feels good to have the six pack — six titles in a row is something very special for us,” said Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski, who helped set up Pavard’s goal. “I think this is one of the biggest achievements in football, how we played will be remembered for a long time.”
Since Flick took charge of Bayern in November 2019, the European champions have lost just five matches, giving him more titles than defeats as coach.
“I hope there won’t be any defeats in the near future and there will be more victories than defeats,” Flick said. “In terms of the title, this was a statement. It’s amazing what the team was able to do. It was really impressive how everyone played.”
Defeat meant heartbreak for Tigres, the first Mexican side to reach the Club World Cup final.
Bayern grabbed the winner when Joshua Kimmich’s cross — intended for Lewandowski — bounced off the hands of Tigres goalkeeper Nahuel Guzman and into the path of Pavard on 59 minutes.
The goal stood after a lengthy video assistant referee review.
Bayern were forced into two changes to their starting lineup after a double blow in the buildup.
Thomas Mueller dropped out after being quarantined having tested positive for COVID-19, while defender Jerome Boateng flew back to Germany for “personal reasons” amid reports that his former girlfriend had been found dead.
“Thomas feels good, he has no symptoms,” Lewandowski said. “It was bad news [that] he tested positive for COVID, but we knew we had to not think about the situation and win for Thomas.”
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