Bayern’s Lea Schüller Aiming For Perfect Christmas Present At Allianz Arena

In front of what could be a German record home attendance at the Allianz Arena in Munich tonight, FC Bayern’s star striker Lea Schüller is hoping to give her fans the perfect Christmas present against what many people believe to be the best women’s team in the world, FC Barcelona.

As of last weekend, over 20,000 tickets have been sold for the UEFA Women’s Champions League match which has been moved from the women’s team 2,500-capacity FC Bayern Campus home ground to the club’s magnificent 75,024-capacity Allianz Arena.

The record home league attendance for a German club side was set earlier this season when 23,200 saw FC Bayern play Eintracht Frankfurt on the opening day of a Bundesliga season which was so far shattered all previous attendance records. This however fell short of the European record for a German club in European competition when 28,112 fans watched Duisburg seal the UEFA Women’s Cup title by drawing 1-1 in the second leg of the 2009 final against Zvezda Perm at the MSV Arena.

The record for a women’s club game in Germany was also set in Munich when the club’s previous home, the Olympiastadion, was the neutral venue for the 2012 Champions League Final between Olympique Lyonnais and 1. FFC Frankfurt, a match watched by 50,212 spectators.

Just two weeks ago in the reverse fixture at Camp Nou, Bayern became the first side in seventeen European matches since March 2018 to prevent Barcelona from scoring in the first half of a Champions League match only to succumb to three second-half goals.

Speaking to the club’s magazine, 51, Schüller admits she can’t wait for the return game at the Allianz Arena. “I’m really looking forward to the game, even if the task is of course very difficult. For me, Barcelona are the strongest team in the world at the moment. But if I can wish for one thing for Christmas, it would be a win against Barcelona in front of hopefully many fans in the Allianz Arena.”

Now 25, Schüller was the Frauen Bundesliga’s top goalscorer last season with 16 league goals. In 2021, only Barcelona’s Jenni Hermoso bettered Schüller’s goal total of 48 around the world. In 44 games for the German national team, Schüller has scored 30 times. Last month she signed a contract extension which will tie the coveted striker to Bayern until June 2026.

The stage was set for her to shine at this summer’s UEFA Women’s Euro in England but after scoring in Germany’s first game against Denmark, Schüller tested positive for Covid-19 and was forced to miss the rest of the group phase. In her absence, Alexandra Popp scored in every match ensuring Schüller did not start another game until Popp was injured during the warm-up for the final. The under-cooked Schüller was thrown back in with less than an hour’s notice as German eventually lost to England in extra time.

Schüller also had to pull out of Germany’s recent friendly matches in the United States against the world champions with knee problems. Looking back, she admits her year has been a roller-coaster ride. “I went into the tournament as the starting player and had a good first game. Then Covid came. It didn’t get to me for two and a half years, but then it came at the European Championships, that was really bitter.”

Asked about Schüller in the pre-match press conference yesterday, Bayern’s new coach Alexander Straus was effusive in his praise while demanding more from her to become the complete striker. “For me Lea, and I can say this here because I also told her, is a player with a great potential. She has everything to be a world-class striker and you saw that (in the last game) against Hoffenheim. She comes on and she is efficient after three minutes – one chance, one goal. That’s her way of playing.”

“We want her to be more involved in the games than maybe what she’s been used to before and that’s somewhere where we think we can develop her game because she has those qualities. As an out-and-out goalscorer, there’s no better in my opinion. I would not change her for anybody.”

“Of course there are a lot of games, that’s why she came on. She proved herself again against Hoffenheim because we have a squad with a lot of qualities. You always need to be on top of your game to play. If you’re not, somebody else is waiting to come in and play. Then again, Lea has the speed, she has the physique, she’s extremely good in the air, she’s smart in her movement and she’s a natural goalscorer. I love working with her to be honest.”

Despite six goals so far this season, Schüller admits that Straus is yet to see her best form. “So far I’ve been very happy with the past few months and the first half of the season at Bayern. I haven’t scored that many goals yet, but I will. We have a new coach in Alexander Straus and we have to get used to a new system as a team. It will take time, but we are on the right track.”