Lennart Karl helps Bayern Munich fight back to beat Sporting Lisbon

Teenager Lennart Karl scored again as Bayern Munich moved a step closer to reaching the UEFA Champions League round of 16 with a come-from-behind win over Portugal's Sporting Lisbon.

Bayern Munich 3-1 Sporting Lisbon
Goals: 0-1 Kimmich og 54', 1-1 Gnabry 65' (assist: Olise), 2-1 Karl 69' (assist Laimer), 3-1 Tah 77' (assist: Gnabry)

Having lost 3-1 at Arsenal in their last Champions League outing, Bayern had a point to prove back on Bavarian soil. Karl duly had the ball in the back of the net just five minutes in, only for the goal to be ruled out upon VAR review for an offside in the build-up.

Harry Kane headed a Joshua Kimmich cross into the arms of Rui Silva at the end of Bayern's next meaningful attack. Karl then sent a crisp volley off target after smart play from the lively Serge Gnabry, who shot wide and tested Silva following a pair of slalom runs just moments later.

Sporting threatened a goal against the run of play with almost 30 minutes gone, but Manuel Neuer reacted brilliantly to prevent Jonathan Tah inadvertently turning in Luis Suarez's cross.

Bayern ended the half in the ascendency as Silva and the Sporting goal frame denied Kane, before Josip Stanišić headed narrowly over and Silva thwarted Karl.

An offside decision denied Karl the opening goal. - IMAGO/Eduard Martin

Sporting had offered little in an attacking sense, but forged ahead early in the second half when Kimmich accidentally directed João Simões's cross past Neuer. Bayern responded in kind as the unmarked Gnabry headed home an Olise corner to level. Karl's brilliant touch and finish from a tight angle put the Bundesliga leaders in front soon after.

A third Bayern goal all but sealed the points with 77 minutes gone as Gnabry directed Kimmich's raking cross into the path of Tah to poke home from close range. Vincent Kompany's team now have a five-point buffer on the league-phase play-off places, ahead of games against Union Saint-Gilloise and PSV Endhoven in January.

Match stats

• Bayern have won four of their five competitive meetings with Sporting (D1).
• Karl has three goals in four Champions League appearances. Aged 17 years and 90 days, he is the youngest-ever player to score in three consecutive games in the competition.
• Tah scored his second Bayern goal, but first in 38 career outings in the Champions League.
• Olise has a Champions League-leading five assists so far this term.
• Kane is the third-highest scorer in this season's competition with five goals, behind only Kylian Mbappé (nine) and Victor Osimhen (six), despite not scoring in his last three games.
• Alphonso Davies made his first appearance since tearing knee ligaments on international duty with Canada in March 2025.

Teams

Bayern: Neuer (c) – Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanišić (Ito 88') – Kimmich, Pavlović (Goretzka 88') – Karl (Guerreiro 76'), Olise, Gnabry (Davies 87') – Kane (Jackson 90'+2)
Unused subs: Ulreich, Urbig, Kim, Bischof, Mike
Out: Boey (ill), Díaz (suspended), Musiala (ankle)
Coach: Vincent Kompany

Sporting: Silva – Fresneda, Diomandé, Quaresma (Vagiannidis 80'), Reis, Araújo (Blopa 90'+2) – Hjulmand (c), Simões (Morita 90'+2) – Catamo (Ioannidis 80'), Santos (Mangas 66') – Suárez
Unused subs: Virginia, Callai, Kochorashvili, Inácio, Ribeiro, Gonçalves, Felicíssimo
Out: Bragança (knee), Debast (knee), Pote (knock), Quenda (foot), Trincão (knock)
Coach: Rui Borges

As it happened!

3 - 1

(0 - 0)

Bayern

FINAL

Sporting

Champions League
League phase, Matchday 6 League phase, Matchday 6 Allianz Arena

Full-time: Bayern 3-1 Sporting

Things were looking a bit nervy for Bayern when Kimmich turned into his own net after 54 minutes, but the German champions turned things around with three goals in 12 minutes. First, Gnabry turned home unmarked from a corner, before Karl gave Bayern the lead with a good finish. Tah then wrapped up the win when he added a third. The win sees Bayern move back up to second in the table, but having played a game more than most teams.

© IMAGO/kolbert-press/Christian Kolbert

Full-time

90'

+ 4

Yellow card

Konrad Laimer

90'

+ 2

Goretzka heads wide

The substitute gets up well to meet a cross, but misses the target by some margin.

90'

+ 2

Substitution

Nicolas Jackson

Harry Kane

90'

+ 1

Substitution

Hidemasa Morita

João Simões

90'

+ 1

Substitution

Salvador Blopa

Maximiliano Araújo

90'

Added time

Four minutes remaining before the full-time whistle.

88'

Davies makes his return

Kompany opts for a triple change that sees Goretzka, Ito and Davies enter the fray. This is the Canadian's first game since March.

88'

Substitution

Hiroki Ito

Josip Stanišić

88'

Substitution

Leon Goretzka

Aleksandar Pavlović

87'

Substitution

Alphonso Davies

Serge Gnabry

83'

Big chance

Vagiannidis breaks the offside trap and pulls the ball back to Suárez, but he stumbles at the vital moment, allowing Upamecano to get back and make the vital block. That probably should have been 3-2.

80'

Substitution

Fotis Ioannidis

Geny Catamo

80'

Substitution

Giorgos Vagiannidis

Eduardo Quaresma

80'

Not far away

The ball is spread out to the left to Gnabry. He feints and cuts inside before curling an effort towards the far post that narrowly misses the target.

Tah adds a third

Kimmich whips in a good cross to the back post that is nodded back across goal by Gnabry. Tah is in the perfect position, completely unmarked, and he pokes home to make it 3-1.

© IMAGO/Frank Hoermann / SVEN SIMON

77'

Jonathan Tah

GOAL!

3:1

76'

Substitution

Raphaël Guerreiro

Lennart Karl

74'

Upamecano heads goalwards

More Bayern threat as Karl stands up a ball to the back post that is met by Upamecano. Silva does well to get across and make the stop.

71'

Yellow card

Morten Hjulmand

71'

Yellow card

Joshua Kimmich

Karl puts Bayern in front

Olise find Laimer on the right. He sends in a perfect first-time pass to Karl, who controls the ball superbly before lashing home with his right foot from a tough angle.

© Alexander Hassenstein

69'

Lennart Karl

GOAL!

2:1

66'

Substitution

Ricardo Mangas

Alisson Santos

Gnabry levels!

Olise whips in a corner that goes all the way through to Gnabry at the back post, who is completely unmarked and taps home. Bayern are level.

© Alexander Hassenstein

65'

Serge Gnabry

GOAL!

1:1

62'

More danger

Santos sends in another dangerous cross that Neuer has to get down to.

60'

Kimmich looks to redeem himself

The Bayern midfielder hits a ferocious shot towards goal that Silva does well to hold on to. Karl then makes some space and has a go as well, but his shot is too central and comfortable for the goalkeeper.

59'

Bayern looking to respond

The hosts are continuing in the same manner as before the goal, probing and looking for space.

Sporting lead!

Simões does superbly to beat Tah and get to the byline before playing across a dangerous low cross that Kimmich meets before a Sporting player and turns into his own net. That could be a big moment.

© Adam Pretty

54'

Joshua Kimmich

OWN GOAL!

0:1

53'

Kane shoots

But misses the target.

52'

Sporting growing in confidence

The visitors are starting to get on the ball a little bit more often. At the moment, they have every chance of taking something from the game.

47'

Not far away

Santos is fed in down the left, and he aims for the far corner, but misses by a small margin. That was good from the visitors.

46'

Back underway

Sporting get the ball moving again, and Bayern threaten immediately as Kane finds Gnabry, but they can't make anything of it.

Kick-off!

Half-time: Bayern 0-0 Sporting

The two teams go into the break level. As expected, Bayern have had much more of the ball and even had the ball in the net through Karl early on, only to have the goal disallowed for offside. The hosts threatened on several occasions, but struggled to break down a resolute Sporting defence. At the other end, the Portuguese side carried a threat on the break and almost opened the scoring as Tah came close to turning a dangerous cross into his own net.

© IMAGO/Bernd Feil/M.i.S.

Half-time

45'

Added time

Just one minute of additional time will be played.

44'

Bayern almost lead

Karl sends Reis spinning inside the box with some fantastic dribbling and shoots, but Silva reacts well to make an important stop. Olise then has a go a few moments later, but he can't hit the target with his curling effort.

42'

Stanišić comes close

Kimmich sends a free-kick out to Olise. The Frenchman has space to control the ball and send in a cross that Stanišić heads just wide of the post.

37'

Almost a moment of Kane magic

Bayern's number nine picks up the ball on the edge of the box before leading his opponent on a merry dance to create space. He then whips a superb curling left-footed shot towards goal that bounces clear off the post!

36'

More threat on the break

Araújo whips in a dangerous cross from the left that Stanišić is forced to clear behind for a corner. The set-piece is met by Suárez, but he can't hit the target.

35'

Sporting continue to hold firm

Bayern send a couple more crosses into the box through Stanišić and Kimmich, but both are dealt with easily enough.

Karl's disallowed goal

Bayern have had the ball in the net once today already. However, Karl's tidy finish was disallowed for an offside against Gnabry in the build-up.

© IMAGO/Eduard Martin

31'

Kane forces Silva into another save

Kimmich chips a ball over the top to Laimer. He manages to work the ball over to Karl in the box, and he sets Kane for the shot. The Englishman looks to bend an effort into the far left corner, but Silva reacts to catch the shot.

28'

Tah nearly fires past Neuer

Catamo is set free on the right and whips in a dangerous low cross that Tah has to deal with before it reaches Suárez. However, the centre-back almost gets it all wrong, deflecting the ball towards his own goal. Luckily for him, Neuer is there to react quickly and make the save.

24'

Great strike

Gnabry darts into the box and cuts onto his right foot and shoots, but Silva is alert to the danger and palms the shot out for a corner that comes to nothing.

22'

Reis heads goalwards

Sporting win a corner that is met by the head of Reis. However, his flicked effort comfortably clears the crossbar.

20'

Not far away

Kimmich spreads the play to Gnabry. He runs at his man on the left and shoots, but narrowly misses the far corner. Olise wasn't too far away from making contact with the shot either.

18'

The next attempt

Kane gets on the end of another good cross, although his headed effort misses the target.

17'

Good chance

A backpost cross from Kimmich is headed back across goal by Gnabry. Kane can't quite reach it, but Karl is there. However, the ball is bouncing awkwardly, and his volley misses the target.

16'

Close

Bayern move the ball around well before Kimmich chips a ball towards Kane in the centre, which runs through to the goalkeeper.

Davies is back

The Canadian received a warm reception upon his return to the bench after a long injury layoff. Whether he will play today is another question.

© IMAGO/xxx/DeFodi Images

13'

Karl has a go

After Olise sees another shot blocked, Karl spins on the edge of the box and has a go, but he can't hit the target.

12'

Olise shoots

The Frenchman skips past his man with a lovely bit of control and cuts inside, but his shot is blocked and deflects against his hand for a free-kick.

11'

Bayern turning up the pressure

The hosts are moving the ball around nicely, trying to work that deep Sporting defence.

7'

Sporting trying to cause problems

The visitors almost managed to create a chance there through some superb pressing, but Bayern were able to scramble the ball clear.

5'

Goal disallowed?

Gnabry almost gets in-behind on the left, but the pass is cleared. The ball drops at the feet of Karl, who takes one touch before firing home superbly. However, the flag is up.

3'

Kane shoots

The Englishman works himself a little space on the edge of the box and shoots, but fires comfortably over the bar.

1'

We're underway

The ball is moving in Munich. Who will come out on top?

Kick-off!

The famous anthem

The Champions League anthem is playing, and the players are on the pitch. Not long to go now.

Players in the tunnel

We're now just a couple of minutes away from kick-off.

Karl warms up

Bayern's 17-year-old superstar warming up ahead of kick-off. We're now just 10 minutes away from the referee's whistle to get us underway.

© Alexander Hassenstein

A sign of things to come?

Ahead of tonight's game, Bayern and Sporting's youth teams faced off in the UEFA Youth League, with the game finishing in a 3-3 draw. Six goals in tonight's showpiece would certainly be good entertainment value.

Bayern's strong record against Portuguese opposition

Bayern are on a five-game Champions League winning run against teams from Portugal and have never lost at home against Portuguese opposition in Europe (13 wins, two draws). In total, they have won 20 of their 31 games against Portuguese sides (nine draws, two losses). In Bayern's last game against Sporting in 2009 (7-1 win), Thomas Müller scored his first senior Bayern goal.

© imago sportfotodienst

Sporting's struggles in Germany

Sporting have won only one of 17 away games in Germany, losing 14 of them. Their only win came away at Frankfurt during the 2022/23 season when they won 3-0.

More on that Bayern team

After rotating successfully in the 5-0 win at Stuttgart at the weekend, Kompany recalls seven players for tonight's game as Neuer, Tah, Stanišić, Pavlović, Karl, Gnabry and Kane all return to the starting XI. In other big news, Davies returns to the bench for the first time since suffering an ACL injury while on international duty in March.

© IMAGO/Marco Steinbrenner/DeFodi Images

More on that Sporting team

Rui Borges makes four changes from the Sporting side that drew 1-1 away to Benfica on Friday, as the injured duo of Pote and Trincão (pictured) are replaced by Santos and Simões, with Reis and Quaresma also coming into defence.

© IMAGO/Maciej Rogowski

Bayern starting XI

Neuer (c) – Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanišić – Kimmich, Pavlović – Karl, Olise, Gnabry – Kane

Bayern subs

Ulreich, Urbig, Kim, Goretzka, Jackson, Davies, Bischof, Ito, Guerreiro, Mike

Sporting starting XI

Silva – Fresneda, Diomandé, Quaresma, Reis, Araújo – Catamo, Hjulmand (c), Simões, Santos – Suárez

Sporting subs

Virginia, Callai, Morita, Vagiannidis, Kochorashvili, Inácio, Ribeiro, Gonçalves, Blopa, Felicíssimo, Ioannidis, Mangas

0:21

Watch: Kane's identical Stuttgart goals

The Bayern striker's first goal at the weekend was scored from an almost identical position that he struck from against Stuttgart last season.

Karl's growing plaudits

Bayern's 17-year-old sensation has gone from strength to strength this season and was one of the standout performers in Bayern's defeat to Arsenal, scoring the Bavarians' only goal of the match. Club legend Franck Ribéry heaped praise on the youngster, saying: "If you're ready and you have quality, then you're ready. There's no perfect age in football. Why do we have to wait? There's no 'too early' in football. I hope he continues this way." Bayern board member for sport, Max Eberl, also added: "His greatest strength is that he doesn’t overthink things. He just wants to play football. He has a sense of self-confidence; a self-assurance, but a healthy one, not an exaggerated one."

© Richard Heathcote

Another step closer to progressing

A draw for Bayern tonight should at the very least assure them of a place in the play-offs for the Champions League knockout rounds. A win, however, would vastly increase the chances of finishing in the top eight and securing a place straight in the round of 16 with two games left to play. Kompany gave his thoughts on his side's prospects, saying: "The stats people say five wins and a draw is maybe enough. But I don't like to think like that. We're playing at home tomorrow, have two of our last three games at home. We're very close and things look good right now."

© IMAGO/Bernd Feil/M.i.S.

Kompany on Davies' injury comeback

The Bayern manager echoed Gnabry's sentiments towards Canadian fullback, whilst shedding further light on the situation. Kompany said: "there is a chance [Davies] will be in the squad", but added that "if the game is tight, which I'm expecting against Sporting, then he'll probably not get any minutes".

© IMAGO/Frank Hoermann/SVEN SIMON

3:57

Watch: Every Kane hat-trick

The England captain has hit 10 trebles in only 76 Bundesliga games for Bayern. Enjoy all of them again here.

Rui Borges on facing Bayern

"It's going to be a really difficult game, against the best team in Europe. Besides the individual talent, they have an extraordinary team ethic, which makes it difficult. Their game is very dynamic. They're a great team and have a great coach."

© Imago

Gnabry gives Phonzy update

Bayern could welcome back Alphonso Davies to the matchday squad on Tuesday. The 25-year-old recently returned to full team training after recovering from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee sustained on international duty with Canada in March 2025. "Phonzy is really relaxed. He was out for a long time. It takes times, but he's been getting better every week," Bayern winger Serge Gnabry said at Monday's pre-match press conference. "He'll be back soon, as long as there's hopefully no setbacks."

© Imago

Kompany on Neuer vs. Urbig

"Manu will play tomorrow if everything goes to plan," Kompany told media on Monday, after Jonas Urbig played in goal against Stuttgart at the weekend. "We have a good, young German goalkeeper in Jonas Urbig. He had a great performance against Stuttgart. He'll get his moment. We've got four games in 11 days. It was also good for Manuel. We always try to bring in Jonas at the right time and support his development. He has our total trust."

© IMAGO/Frank Hoermann/SVEN SIMON

Vincent Kompany on facing Sporting

"They're a complete team, who are very compact when they defend. They're also very dangerous on the counter. Their back line is very active and steps up. They pressed high against Benfica. They have good players and no fear of getting forward. They also have lots of players for the future. They're an exciting team. We need to be at 100 percent. Sporting are in the [league phase] top eight for a reason."

© Harry Murphy

2:03

Kane's insane hat-trick

Harry Kane came off the bench in the 60th minute with Bayern 1-0 up at in-form Stuttgart on Saturday, and hit three goals to seal a 5-0 win!

Sporting's fine form

The Lisbon side extended their unbeaten run to 12 matches in all competitions by taking a 1-1 draw away at big local rivals Benfica on Friday, with Pedro Gonçalves opening the scoring.

© IMAGO/Miguel Lemos

Dier following with interest

Eric Dier, who developed at Sporting and spent 18 months in Munich before moving to Monaco last summer, told Bayern's website: “I just hope it’ll be a great game. Of course Sporting will be underdogs. I always hope Sporting do well – which goes for Bayern too. I follow such matches as a fan and hope both teams play well.” The English defender added he is still in touch regularly with Harry Kane, Serge Gnabry, Joshua Kimmich and Konrad Laimer.

© DFL/GettyImages/Christian Kaspar-Bartke

5:00

Watch: Manuel Neuer still setting the goalkeeper standard

Bayern's shot-stopper remains at the top of his game even at the grand old age of 39.

Head-to-head

These two teams have faced off four times before, and it has been one way traffic so far. They first met in the group stage of the 2006/07 Champions League, with Bayern winning 1-0 before a goalless draw. They then faced off in the last 16 in 2008/09 in what was a forgettable tie for the Portuguese side - they lost 12-1 on aggregate following 7-1 and 5-0 defeats.

© imago sportfotodienst

Sporting - the story so far

The Portuguese outfit, too, have impressed across their opening five games. They head into Matchday 6 in the last of the eight qualification spots for the last 16 after wins over Kairat Almaty, Marseille and Club Brugge, while they also drew with Juventus to amass a total of 10 points.

© IMAGO/Luis Loureiro

Bayern - the story so far

The Bavarians have enjoyed a strong start to the Champions League campaign, winning their opening four matches. They came up against league phase leaders Arsenal last time out and fell to a 3-1 defeat, but they are well placed to reach the last 16 automatically.

© THOMAS SAMSON

Welcome!

Welcome along and thanks for joining us for build-up and live coverage of Bayern Munich's Champions League encounter at home to Sporting Lisbon on Matchday 6 of the league phase, which kicks off at 6.45pm CET on Tuesday.

About the clubs

Bayern Munich

Allianz Arena