Former Bayern Munich winger Kingsley Coman holds a special place in the club’s heart given his Champions League goal back in 2020.
When it comes down to who Coman might be backing when Bayern Munich squares off with another one of his ex-clubs, Paris Saint-Germain, Coman knows exactly who he will be supporting on Tuesday when the teams square off in the UCL.
“This match means a lot to me personally. It’s difficult to choose a side. I grew up in Paris; PSG was my childhood club. They were always the team I supported until I left as a teenager. And then came Bayern. I was there for ten years, from 19 to 29 – so basically my entire adult life. Bayern has become a home for me. That’s why it feels a bit like the child in me versus the adult in me. They are two clubs that are both a part of me,” Coman told FCBayern.com. “I have both clubs in my heart, but Bayern is the more recent chapter. I only left a few months ago, many of my friends are still there, I know the people at the club very well. So it’s clear that I’ll be rooting for Bayern this time. I wouldn’t necessarily call them favorites, though. It’s more about my personal connection. And that connection is still very strong with Bayern at the moment.
“At Bayern, winning is almost a given. Winning the league, going far: that’s what’s expected. This expectation sharpens your mind. You don’t let yourself go and you’re often already mentally prepared when these kinds of games come up. Because you’ve never really switched off. In the long run, that’s exhausting.
“After a win, you’re immediately thinking about the next game. But this very mentality is one of the reasons why Bayern has been such a great club for so many years. It’s part of the club’s DNA. Against Paris, however, I don’t see it as a big advantage, because they’re in a similar situation. In the Champions League semifinal, it’s usually like this: you play against teams that are just as good, just as focused, and just as serious as you are.”
Coman, who left the Bavarians last summer to join Al-Nassr on a lucrative deal, is probably at least a little conflicted. It is slightly unclear if he actually wanted to leave Bayern Munich or the club just did not have him on its plans moving forward, but it was evident that the team was turning the page on that previous generation of players. Even with that, Coman still has fond feelings from his time in Bavaria.
“I think the team really feels: This can be our year. Bayern is still in all competitions, the dream lives on. Since 2020, they haven’t been this close to a treble chance in a season. Of course, it won’t be easy. If there’s one team that I consider absolutely on par with Bayern this year, it’s Paris Saint-Germain. I can’t say that one team is clearly better than the other. For football fans, it will be a wonderful match: two of the best teams playing attractive football with great intensity. This is the moment when legends are made,” Coman said. “For me, (this era is) the best Paris ever. You could sense that this team had the potential to win the Champions League – but something was missing. PSG came very close many times in recent years. Now that they’ve done it, that barrier is gone. The same players are now even more confident going into key moments. And that’s precisely what makes them even more dangerous. You can see the self-belief, you can see how much they’ve grown as a team. They’ve finally arrived where they always wanted to be.”
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…