Bayern Munich winger Kingsley Coman says he is looking for “revenge” against his former side when the German champions take on Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Coman, 21, joined the PSG academy at the age of nine and broke into the first team under Carlo Ancelotti in 2013. The France international left the club for Juventus in the summer of 2014 having made just four senior appearances at PSG.
But Coman said he is more interested in avenging Bayern’s 3-0 defeat in Paris in September — which prompted the sacking of Bayern boss Ancelotti — than revisiting his own personal history.
“It is nothing personal but it is about revenge for me,” he said. “We want to send a message to the whole of Europe. We still remember the first match and want to show the rest of Europe that we belong to the top teams capable of winning the Champions League.”
But Bayern manager Jupp Heynckes played down any notions of a grudge match against the Ligue 1 leaders.
“I don’t think the players are thinking about revenge tomorrow. I do not like that term in football,” he said. “For me it is just two very big teams meeting at the highest level. On the one side, there’s Bayern’s history and tradition up against a new, emerging power.”
With top spot in their Champions League group still up for grabs, Heynckes said Bayern will aim to counter PSG’s “superstars” with a strong “collective” performance on Tuesday.
“When an opponent has brilliant individuals, then you have to compete as a unit,” Heynckes said at the prematch news conference. “I know all about Neymar from watching Barcelona. He’s a world-class player, a great dribbler and dangerous in front of goal.
“Kylian Mbappe is only 18 and it is simply staggering and extraordinary how he is playing. However, at the end of the day they are only human and our strikers aren’t so bad either and will strike fear into the opponents defence too.”
Heynckes, 72, has reached the Champions League final in each of his three attempts in the competition. He won in 1998 in his one and only campaign with Real Madrid and again with Bayern in their 2013 Treble-winning season — losing a penalty shootout to Chelsea on home soil the previous year.
He was keen to stress PSG’s massive investment in elite individual talent was no guarantee of success in the competition.
“A Champions League-winning team must not only have exceptional players but also be a good unit, respectful and not be jealous of each other,” he said. “The atmosphere must be good within the team.
“Their investment does not mean that they will necessary win the Champions League. My experience shows me team spirit and teamwork will win you a Champions League — not just superstars.”
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