Good evening and welcome to Sports Mole's live commentary of the Champions League game between Bayern Munich and Valencia this evening.
Bayern reached the final of Europe's premier club competition last season but lost on penalties to Chelsea on their own home turf, and will hope to embark on this term's campaign on a winning note.
Jupp Heynckes' side have made a brilliant start to the season, winning all three of their Bundesliga games so far.
Meanwhile, Valencia will confront the side that beat them in the final of the Champions League back in 2001 on penalties.
Mauricio Pellegrino missed the decisive spot kick at San Siro in Milan for Los Che and will now hope to bury the ghost tonight as the Spanish club's coach.
Both teams will be aiming for a positive start in this Group F clash at the Allianz Arena in Munich, that's for sure. You won't miss a kick with our coverage.
90+6I hope that you enjoyed our live coverage of the match. From me, it's goodbye for now. Have a good evening.
90+5It?s all over at the Allianz Arena as Bayern Munich have defeated Valencia 2-1 in their Champions League Group F game. It was an utterly dominating performance from the Bavarians giants, who went ahead after 38 minutes through Bastian Schweinsteiger and then doubled their lead on 76 minutes when Toni Kroos found the target. Nelson Valdez pulled one back in the first minute of injury time, but it proved to be too little, too late.
90+4Mario Mandzukic takes the penalty but it is brilliantly saved by Diego Alves, who has been great all evening.
90+3RED CARD: Adil Rami has been shown his second yellow card of the match for a foul on Robben inside the Valencia penalty area. Penalty to Bayern.
90+1GOAL: Nelson Valdez scores for Valencia as he heads home a wonderful cross from the left flank. 2-1 now!
89minsSUBSTITUTION: Antonio Barragan comes on for Roberto Soldado, as Valencia make a late substitution.
87minsLahm takes the free kick but it is blocked and the final shot from Mandzukic goes wide.
86minsFree kick to Bayern Munich on the edge of the Valencia penalty box. Great chance for the Bavarians to make it 3-0.
85minsFive minutes of normal time remain at the Allianz Arena. Will we see any sort of a comeback from Valencia, or will Bayern scored their third goal of the evening?
82minsBayern still retaining possession of the football as they know that they have won this game. Valencia look downbeat and must have realised that they are going to go home with nothing.
80minsThat is it, then, 2-0 to Bayern Munich with just 10 minutes of normal time remaining. Surely, Valencia have no chance of staging a comeback...
76minsGOAL! Toni Kroos makes it 2-0 to Bayern Munich with a brilliant first-time effort that whizzes past Diego Alves and into the Valencia goal.
75mins15 minutes of normal time remain at the Allianz Arena.
74minsBayern have slowed the tempo a bit at the moment and are passing the ball around languidly. They needed to do this, really, as Valencia were getting the better of them in the midfield and upfront.
72minsSUBSTITUTION: Valencia make another change. Jonathan Viera comes on for Andres Guardado.
70minsValencia are pushing forward now, as Bayern appear to have lost some concentration in the middle.
69minsSUBSTITUTION: Bayern Munich make another change. Luiz Gustavo comes on for Javi Martinez.
68minsTino Costa takes the corner, but it is easily defended away by the hosts.
67minsSofiane Feghouli creates another chance for Valencia, as he marches down the right flank and takes a shot at the Bayern goal. He earns a corner.
63minsSUBSTITUTION: Bayern make their second chance of the evening. Mandzukic comes on for Pizarro.
62minsSUBSTITUTION: Valencia make a change. Nelson Valdez comes on for Jonas.
60minsMartinez and Soldado are in a heap now, as the two clash with each other. But both get up and the play resumes.
59minsThe corner is floated in, and Martinez tries to head it towards goal but fails to keep it on target.
58minsKroos forces Diego Alves into making a great save with a ferocious shot. Corner for Bayern again.
55minsValencia are showing more urgency in the early minutes of the second half.
53minsTino Costa takes a shot at the Bayern goal from outside the area, but Neuer makes an easy save.
52minsValencia create their first chance of the second half, this Feghouli carving out a cross from the left flank, but there is no one to meet it in a Valencia shirt.
50minsBayern playing patient, possessive football at the moment, with Schweinsteiger and Martinez retaining the ball in the midfield.
48minsFree kick to Valencia from a dangerous position. Tino Costa takes it, but Manuel Neuer makes a comfortable save.
46minsRobben on the march down the left flank rightaway, as he attempts a shot but it does not trouble Diego Alves.
46minsSUBSTITUTION: Bayern have made one change at half-time. Thomas Muller has come on for Franck Ribery.
46minsAnd here we start with the second-half action...
8.46pmThe second-half is about to start, as the two sets of players are coming on to pitch.
8.43pmValencia need to attack more in the second half. An early goal would help them a lot, but if they concede, then Bayern could just run away with the full three points.
8.34minsThe first 45 minutes were completely dominated by Bayern Munich who have had the better chances, more territorial advantage and more possession. Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was hardly tested, while Valencia's Diego Alves was forced to make a few good saves.
45+1minsIt is half-time in the Champions League Group F game Bayern Munich and Valencia at the Allianz Arena, and it is 1-0 to the hosts. Bastian Schweinsteiger?s goal in the 38th minute is the difference between the two sides at the moment.
45minsJust one minute of injury time has been awarded.
44minsJust as I said that, Valencia launched an attack, but it was quickly smothered. Feghouli was once again at the heart of it, but Bayern are up to the task of defending their citadel.
43minsJust two minutes of normal time remain in this half. Will we see a goal from Valencia? It does not seem likely as Bayern are completely dominating possession and territory.
42minsBayern continue their search for goal, this time Kroos sidenetting from the right after being released by Lahm.
40minsIt was a deserved lead for Bayern there, as they have been asking question of the Valencia defence all evening.
38minsGOAL! Bastian Schweinsteiger scores and gives Bayern Munich the lead at the Allianz Arena. Another brilliant attacking move sees Robben tee up the Germany international, who slots home from close range with his right foot.
38minsGOAL! Bastian Schweinsteiger scores and gives Bayern Munich the lead at the Allianz Arena. Another brilliant attacking move sees Robben tee up the Germany international, who slots home from close range with his right foot.
37minsFeghouli crafts a cross from the right but there is a no-one in a Valencia shirt near it, and Neuer claims the ball with ease.
36minsPell-mell inside the Valencia penalty box following the corner, but the visitors manage to come out of that unscathed.
36minsPell-mell inside the Valencia penalty box following the corner, but the visitors manage to come out of that unscathed.
36minsPell-mell inside the Valencia penalty box following the corner, but the visitors manage to come out of that unscathed.
36minsPell-mell inside the Valencia penalty box following the corner, but the visitors manage to come out of that unscathed.
36minsPell-mell inside the Valencia penalty box following the corner, but the visitors manage to come out of that unscathed.
35minsROBBEN! The Dutchman takes a shot from the right side of the Bayern penalty box with his left foot but it takes a deflection and goes off for a corner.
34minsJavi Martinez almost created a good half-chance on his own then, as he skipped past two players but eventually lost the ball in front of the Valencia penalty area.
32minsBayern have looked by far the most attacking and more threatening of the two sides at the Allianz Arena tonight, but Valencia have kept them away brilliantly so far.
32minsBayern have looked by far the most attacking and more threatening of the two sides at the Allianz Arena tonight, but Valencia have kept them away brilliantly so far.
30minsHalf an hour gone in this game and it is still 0-0.
27minsBrilliant counter-attack from Valencia, as Sofiane Feghouli marches down the right, but he is dispossessed of the ball by Dante.
27minsBrilliant counter-attack from Valencia, as Sofiane Feghouli marches down the right, but he is dispossessed of the ball by Dante.
25minsAnother corner for Bayern. Ribery takes it this time, but the hosts fail to manufacture anything productive.
22minsBayern craft another good move down the left, with Robben, Badstuber and Ribery all combining, but Joao Pereira blocks Robery?s final cross.
19minsNow Toni Kroos goes for goal from outside the Valencia penalty box, and once again Diego Alves makes a comfortable save.
18minsBastian Schweinsteiger takes an attempt at the Valencia goal, but Diego Alves claims it with ease.
17minsPizarro cuts in from the left and attempts to place himself in a shooting position, but there are three defenders around him. So almost inevitably he loses the ball.
15minsAnother attack from Bayern, this time Robben shooting from the right but Diego Alves claims the ball with ease.
13minsSofiane Feghouli and Joao Pereira try to link up and push Valencia into the Bayern penalty area, but the home side?s defenders smother the danger with ease.
12minsRIBERY! The corner falls to the Frenchman inside the Valencia penalty area, and he shoots at goal, but fails to score.
11minsBayern go close again, this time Kroos finding Pizarro on the right, and the striker earns a corner.
10minsTen minutes gone in the first half at the Allianz Arena, and it is still 0-0 between Bayern and Valencia. The hosts have looked the more confident team so far, I have to say.
8minsBayern Munich are all over the Valencia defence at the moment, as the visitors are struggling to contain the Bavarian attack.
7minsRibery whips in a low cross from the right aimed at Pizarro, but the striker fails to shoot it towards goal.
6minsParejo makes a good tackle on Pizarro on the edge of the Valencia penalty, as the visitors stave off another Bayern attack.
5minsThe crowd at the Allianz Arena is in full voice as Bayern continue to conceive moves in an effort to breach the Valencia citadel.
4minsRibery marches down the left flank and whips in a low cross aiming for Kroos inside the Valencia penalty area, but the final shot taken goes over the Valencia crossbar.
3minsIt has been a decent start to the game, with Bayern hogging most of the possession at the moment.
1And here we go, as the game kick off...
7.40pmThe players will come out on to the pitch soon.
7.30pm15 minutes left for kick off at the Allianz Arena between Bayern Munich and Valencia. It promises to be a great game, and stay tuned on this page to catch all the action live.
7.27pmValencia coach Mauricio Pellegrino spoke about tonight's game yesterday, and this is what he had to say: "This is the 2012/13 season ? we don't think about the 2001 final any more. Bayern have signed a very strong Spanish player in Javi Martinez, but we are not just up against one player - we are facing a strong team. I hope our fans watch us and I hope they will be proud of their team. Anything can happen in football and we hope we will see something special. We have to avoid showing them too much respect. That would be the biggest mistake we could make. We have to avoid making too many small mistakes. What I expect from my players is that they stay calm and play as well as they can. I know very well how good they are. My boys are ready for the game. We are well prepared and we know our opponents quite well. I am not thinking too much about Bayern. They will be our opponents, but I am concentrating on my team, on what we can do."
7.24pmBayern coach Jupp Heynckes spoke about tonight?s game yesterday, and this is what he had to say: "We go into tomorrow's game high on confidence. It really seems we have added quality to our squad over the summer and it is good to have alternatives on the bench ? that will be important for the rest of the season. We saw that on Saturday, when even without [Mario] Gomez, [David] Alaba, [Franck] Ribery and [Arjen] Robben we had a strong side. I will always remember my time in Spain and obviously I have been reading the Spanish newspapers and making a few calls to learn more about Valencia. The club are among the top three in Spain - just remember 2000 and 2001 [when they twice finished UEFA Champions League runners-up]. The team of today is very well organised and physically strong. Their pressing is great and I have a lot of respect for them."
7.20Just under half an hour left for the big Champions League game of the night to kick off.
7.18pmIt was Mauricio Pellegrino, who is now the Valencia coach. He will surely be looking to make amends tonight in some way.
7.15pmBayern Munich and Valencia famously featured in the final of the Champions League in 2001 at San Siro in Milan. Gaizka Mendieta scored for Los Che from the penalty in the third minute, and Stefan Effenberg equalised from the spot on 51 minutes. The game eventually went to penalties, and the Bavarian giants won 5-4 in the shootout. And guess who failed to convert the final penalty that night?
7.10pmValencia will rely on star forward Roberto Soldado for goals tonight. The Spain international striker could be a handful for the Bayern defenders.
7.03pmPizarro will be the lone forward tonight for Bayern and he will be supported by Ribery and Robben down the wings. Coach Jupp Heynckes has gone with experience tonight, as he has left winger Shaqiri on the bench.
6.58pmTEAM NEWS Valencia Starting XI: Diego Alves, Cissokho, Rami, Joao Pereira, Ricardo Costa, Feghouli, Guardado, Parejo, Costa, Jonas, Soldado. Substitutes: Guaita, Barrag?n, V?ctor Ruiz, Viera, Berrnat, Portugu?s, Valdez.
6.55pmTEAM NEWS:Bayern Munich Starting XI: Neuer, Dante, Boateng, Lahm, Badstuber, Ribery, Javi Mart?nez, Robben, Schweinsteiger, Kroos, Pizarro. Substitutes: Starke, Shaqiri, M?ller, Luiz Gustavo, Can, Tymoshchuk, Mandzukic.
6.52pmThe two sides are favourites to win this group that also has Lille and BATE Borisov, and both will be keen to pick up maximum points tonight.
6.51pmOn the other hand, Valencia?s start to La Liga has been disappointing. Los Che are currently 11th in the table with five points from four matches.
6.50pmBayern will head into this game as favourites as they are playing at home. The Bavarian giants have also made a 100% start to the Bundesliga, winning all three of the matches.
6.49pmBoth teams are regulars in Europe?s premier club competition and both have some genuinely world class footballers. So the match promises goals and entertaining football among other things.
6.45pmGood evening everyone. I am Subhankar Mondal and I will be taking you through the Champions League match between Bayern Munich and Valencia tonight.
Written by
Subhankar Mondal
Subhankar Mondal
