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Bayern vs. Real Madrid: SAP Garden to open with a bang

Bayern vs. Real Madrid: SAP Garden to open with a bang

Članak

3 Min čitanja

Geoff Gillingham

Euroleague.net

Bayern vs. Real Madrid: SAP Garden to open with a bang

In the first round of the new season, optimism is very much in the air

Regular Season

Round 1 of 34

game Real Madrid vs FC Bayern Munich

Regular Season

FC Bayern MunichBAY

9789

Real MadridRMB

Overview

A top-class arena has the chance to propel a club into a new dimension, and that is very much what FC Bayern Munich is hoping for. Now entering its 10th Turkish Airlines EuroLeague campaign, the German giant will present its brand-new SAP Garden on the continental stage against the most successful team in EuroLeague history, Real Madrid, in the first Rivalry Series game of the season.

Every new campaign brings new hope and optimism, making this Round 1 clash particularly interesting. Bayern is coming off a summer in which it changed head coach following Pablo Laso’s surprise departure, with Gordie Herbert – the architect of Germany’s run to a gold medal at the 2023 FIBA World Cup and a fourth-placed finish at the 2024 Olympic Games – being the new man in charge. He has several familiar faces from his time with the national team on Bayern’s roster, including new additions Oscar da Silva and Johannes Voigtmann, making the adjustment process that much smoother.

For Real, it is coming off three successive trips to the EuroLeague Championship Game and will be hoping for the same again in 2024-25. However, it lost a lot of experience and key players in its rotation this past summer, with Rudy Fernandez and Sergio Rodriguez retiring, while Guerschon Yabusele, Fabien Causeur and Vincent Poirier have all sought pastures new. That means that the core players who have remained, like Walter Tavares, Facundo Campazzo, Mario Hezonja and Dzanan Musa, will see their roles increase even further. A couple of players have returned to the club this summer, too, in Serge Ibaka and Usman Garuba.

In fact, Ibaka gets an early opportunity to face his former team after returning to Europe last year with Bayern. Aged 35, the veteran big man still posted impressive numbers in Munich, averaging 12.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.2 blocks across 28 EuroLeague games, and his one-two punch with Tavares should be deadly all season long.

If Bayern may be in for a long night in the paint, one area where it may be able to have some joy against Real is at the guard positions. In a new offensive scheme under Coach Herbert, scorers Carsen Edwards, Shabazz Napier and Andreas Obst should be given free rein, with Nick Weiler-Babb and Yam Madar making their presence felt on defense against Campazzo, in particular.

SAP Garden is able to hold 12,500 fans, way up from the 6,500 capacity of BMW Park, and Bayern will be banking on its fans being the sixth man on Thursday night. Real comes into this game on a four-game winning streak against Bayern, having last lost to the German giant in Madrid in April 2022, and it has been victorious on its last four trips to Munich. The last time Bayern defeated Real at home was in late October 2019, while the only other time it beat Los Blancos came in its first-ever EuroLeague campaign in 2013-14.

There should be quite the show – on and off the court – for the 16th meeting between Bayern and Real in the EuroLeague. In addition to following this Rivalry Series clash via EuroLeague TV, check out the EuroLeague’s social media channels as we bring you even closer to the action. For post-game analysis from the experts, EuroLeague.net is the place to go.

Bayern is aiming to start off its new era at SAP Garden with a bang, but will Real play the role of party pooper? We will find out on Thursday night!

Game Videos

Top plays: Carsen Edwards, 2024-25
Top plays: Dzanan Musa, 2024-25
Real Madrid vs. Olympiacos | Round 23 | EuroLeague classic games 2023-24
Real Madrid-Olympiacos Piraeus | Playoffs Game 4 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:18
Hezonja monster block! Motorola Magic Moment
00:25
Fernando rocks the rim! Motorola Magic Moment
00:24
Fernando dunks in transition! Motorola Magic Moment
00:27
Dzanan Musa: 'We have the formula of how we want to play'
00:52
Walter Tavares: 'The playoffs are about defense, not offense'
Real Madrid-Olympiacos Piraeus | Playoffs Game 3 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:18
Ibaka rejects McKissic! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
Olympiacos Piraeus-Real Madrid | PO Game 2 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:22
Deck ends first quarter in style! Motorola Magic Moment
Olympiacos Piraeus-Real Madrid | PO Game-1 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
01:36
Mario Hezonja: 'We can do great things'
Real Madrid-FC Bayern Munich | Play-In Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:12
Campazzo’s creative magic! Motorola Magic Moment
00:12
Real teamwork from Madrid! Motorola Magic Moment
00:12
Kharchenkov’s flying slam! Motorola Magic Moment
Walter Tavares, March-April MVP: ‘It’s hard these days to be a big man’
00:54
Devin Booker: 'We were not gonna let this game slip'
FC Bayern Munich-Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade | Play-In Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
Real Madrid-Paris Basketball | Play-In Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:35
Edwards weaved his way for a layup! Motorola Magic Moment
00:13
Tavares dunks in transition! Motorola Magic Moment
00:52
Walter Tavares: 'This is a gift from God'
Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade-Real Madrid | RS Round 34 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
FC Bayern Munich-Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul | RS Round 34 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:46
Tavares wins it with his soft touch! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
00:09
Hezonja rocks the rim with aplomb! Motorola Magic Moment
00:17
A huge dunk by Tavares! Motorola Magic Moment
00:12
Elias Harris beats the shot-clock buzzer! Motorola Magic Moment
01:32
Mario Hezonja: 'Every time there is a challenge, we respond'
Real Madrid-Paris Basketball | RS Round 33 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv-FC Bayern Munich | RS Round 33 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:17
Hezonja's reverse dunk! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
00:16
Ibaka's double block! Motorola Magic Moment
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade-Real Madrid | RS Round 32 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:10
Hezonja with an almighty dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
00:59
Shabazz Napier: 'Today we showed resilience'
FC Bayern Munich-Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade | RS Round 32 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:37
Nick Weiler-Babb: 'Big-time players make big plays'
FC Barcelona-FC Bayern Munich | RS Round 31 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
Real Madrid-EA7 Emporio Armani Milan | RS Round 31 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
00:10
Hezonja with the reverse slam! Motorola Magic Moment
00:35
Llull does what he does best! Motorola Magic Moment
00:18
Harris dunks home Voigtmann’s sweet dish! Motorola Magic Moment,
00:13
Facu magic! Motorola Magic Moment
01:05
Walter Tavares: 'Real Madrid means winning'
Real Madrid-LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne | RS Round 30 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague