As the flight carrying Bayern Munich’s squad and staff glides into the south-western corner of Cyprus in Monday’s early evening, some of their experienced, decorated players might reflect that, until very recently, they never expected to be here as they gaze out of their windows. Their hosts, Pafos, have certainly come a long way to breathe this rarefied air, removing from their path along the way no less a name than Crvena Zvezda, whose vintage team vanquished Bayern in an epic semi-final on their route to becoming European champions in 1991.
Finding yourself somewhere you didn’t necessarily expect to be is a continued theme from Bayern’s weekend. Yes, they certainly expected their routine 4-0 win against Werder Bremen (a name that, like the boys from Belgrade, has known more glorious incarnations in the past) on Friday night, but for once it felt like it was about the individual achievement rather than the collective one.
