Harry Kane has now scored 21 goals in 25 Champions League games for Bayern Munich. (Photo by Danilo Di Giovanni/Getty Images)
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Bayern Munich has smashed Chelsea 3-1 to start the 2025/26 Champions League campaign. Trevoh Chalobah (20’ O.G.) and Harry Kane (27’ & 63’) scored the three goals for Bayern in front of 75,000 spectators at the Allianz Arena. The lone Chelsea goal was scored by Cole Palmer (29’).
Indeed, it was that goal by Palmer two minutes after Kane made it 2-0 that briefly made this match interesting. Then in the second half, Bayern Munich took complete control, and Kane would score his second of the night.
According to a report by [Transfermarkt](https://www.transfermarkt.us/kane-decisive-again-no-player-has-scored-more-champions-league-goals-since-he-joined-bayern/view/news/460591), Kane has now scored more goals than any other player in the Champions League since he joined Bayern Munich in the summer of 2023. Kane has now scored 21 goals in 25 Champions League games for the Rekordmeister. As pointed out by Transfermarkt’s enormous database, Kylian Mbappé is second during the same timeframe with 17 goals in 27 games.
"I don't have much to say about the things everyone can see,” Bayern Munich head coach Vincent Kompany said when asked about Kane’s goalscoring record. “What I can say is: watch his work off the ball. Watch him press, help the team, and recover the ball. It's essential for him, given the amount of energy he spends, to receive rewards and have opportunities to score. We can talk about talent and quality, but I keep highlighting that side because you need a lot of hard work to be where he is.”
Not surprisingly, Kane was once again voted the player of the match by UEFA. "My son loves these things,” Kane said when asked what he was going to do with his latest UEFA Man of the Match Trophy. “Luckily, they're not that heavy. I like to bring them to him when I can.”
Naturally, the England captain was also elated about his side’s result against FIFA Club World Cup winners Chelsea. “Amazing result, top performance against a really good side,” Kane said. “We went 2-0 up, and it was disappointing to concede straight after the second goal.”
Despite conceding, though, Bayern kept pressing and, most importantly, was in control. “We stayed calm and did very well in the second half,” Kane said. “We made it difficult for them to press. Then they got tired, and the spaces started opening up. It was a tough, physical game. We're delighted with the result.”
Harry Kane was unstoppable against Chelsea. (Photo by Boris Streubel/Getty Images)
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The key to the game was to not just meet Chelsea’s intensity but also exceed it. Indeed, Kompany and several Bayern players highlighted the level of intensity and noted that they met it as a key to not only controlling Chelsea but also to beating the Blues decisively.
“It was a very intense game, that's how I perceived it from the sideline,” Kompany said. “The boys had fun on the pitch and deserved to win the game. We already faced difficult opponents this season: Tottenham in pre-season, Stuttgart, and Leipzig. However, we are aware that Chelsea are the Club World Cup champions. The concentration was very good today; we played our game and maintained focus throughout. It was important to be aggressive without leaving too much space and not to lose many duels.”
Austrian midfielder/right-back Konrad Laimer, who was also a strong candidate for player of the match on Wednesday, agreed with his bench boss. "It was very intensive,” Laimer said. “Both teams have a good style of play. We did better today and deserved to win. We stayed focused after their goal and simply played our game. We always want to play our game regardless of the opponent.”
Ahead of the game, there was quite a bit of talk in the media regarding the financial power of Premier League clubs like Chelsea compared to those in the Bundesliga. None of that was evident on the field, however. In fact, as is often the case at the Allianz, Bayern was by far the more dominant team.
Indeed, there was never much doubt about Bayern’s best 14 to 15 players. When mostly fit, this squad will be able to compete with any club in Europe. The questions concern depth and whether players like Kane can sustain their fitness into April and May when trophies are decided.
As things stand, however, this Bayern side has shown that it means business, especially with Kane in phenomenal form. The England captain has been involved in a goal every 39 minutes this season, and with Kane in top form like he was against Chelsea, Bayern will be among the Champions League favorites once again.