Match awards for Bayern Munich's narrow 1-0 win against SL Benfica (Champions League)

Bayern Munich played like a team that had already been eliminated from the Champions League, while Benfica held firm with their back five. Only Jamal Musiala scored a goal, which somehow made up for his rather poor performance and Bayern's position in the table. Other players deserve praise, but who exactly?

Jersey swap: Benfica

The Portuguese team defended as a unit and were lethal on the counterattack. Bayern managed just enough to stave off any danger, but at all times it looked as if Benfica were on the verge of scoring. It's worrying that Bayern can't get past halfway good teams when (on paper) they should beat those teams with ease.

The Emperor: Alphonso Davies

Another member of the defense would be nominated for a different award, and with Davies always an attacking threat (and drawing a foul that prevented Benfica's goal and saved Manuel Neuer's blushes), he gets the nod here.

Honorable Mention: Dayot Upamecano

The football god: Joshua Kimmich

Harry Kane has played so well that he might as well compete for the midfield award, but because he hasn't achieved much he won't win it (the story of his career so far). Despite playing deeper than João Palhinha, Kimmich played a lot of forward passes in this game. Even though he was hit hard by the ball and his corners were questionable at best, he had a bigger impact than Palhinha, who looked like an NPC tonight.

The bomber: Leroy Sané

To be honest, Jamal Musiala played poorly apart from his goal. Kane, who was credited with the assist, also didn't do much in this game. It would therefore be unfair to hand “The Bomber” over to one of them. It is also the attacker with the greatest impact, and that is none other than Leroy Sané. His contributions were great, leading Kane and Musiala to combine to score the only goal of the game and power through Benfica's compact defense with ease compared to his teammates.

The 28-year-old German was kept out of the starting XI for a while to recover from his weaknesses and, boy, did he deliver on his return. With Serge Gnabry playing like he was a part of West Brom in 2015/16 and Michael Olise being a godsend, Sané makes a strong case for playing in the starting XI. Hopefully he can play for more than half a season.

Master of the Game: Kim Min-jae

At a time when Bayern played difficult and had (almost) nothing to offer up front, Kim was promoted after a difficult series of games for him. In this game it was clearly Benfica's goal, but the Korean defender stood his ground and didn't let anything go Os Encarnados penetrate in some form. The 28-year-old defender did enough to earn Bayern a goal in a hard-fought encounter. Well done by him.