Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel reflected on his side’s dramatic exit in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, saying that “lady luck was against” his side as Bayern Munich scored the go-ahead goal in the final moments of the second leg of their knockout phase playoff tie.
Bayern entered Tuesday’s match at home with a 2-1 advantage from last week’s first leg, one in which Celtic were close to scoring for much of the game. The Scottish side pressed for a goal for about an hour on Tuesday before Nicolas-Gerrit Kuhn scored in the 63rd minute, leveling the aggregate score at 2-2. The game looked destined for extra time, but Alphonso Davies’ goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time ensured Bayern would advance to the next round.
“There’s not much to say,” Schmeichel said in an emotional interview with his father Peter, a retired legendary goalkeeper and CBS Sports broadcaster. “It is a cruel game sometimes. We did everything that we possibly could and lady luck was against us in the last kick of the game. I think coming away to Bayern and obviously, you go out, but we’re disappointed with a draw. I think that says a lot about where this team is going. I’m very proud of the boys. I thought we defended really well. I thought everything that we tried to accomplish within the game, but at the end, luck was against us.”
After Peter commended Celtic for a well-played tie, Kasper agreed with his father that the Scottish team deserved praise, especially for demonstrating tactical range during an eventful Champions League campaign.
“You should give us compliments,” Kasper said. “The fact that we’re sat in the dressing room at Bayern Munich and are extremely disappointed, I think that says a lot about the journey that we’ve been on … [We’ve played] a little bit of a different style to what we probably play in our home league, but having that cleverness and a little bit more of a ruthless streak within us, it’s brought us very, very far and right now, it just feels rubbish but I think when we go back and analyze the two games and we reflect, I think it’ll stand us in good stead. Experience for a lot of the younger players that haven’t played at this stage, at this level before. I think we’re in a good place for the future.”
The UEFA Champions League Today broadcast team also used the occasion to thank Kasper for consistently stopping by for post-match interviews with his father, with Jamie Carragher taking a particular fondness for the father-son dynamic.
“It’s been a nice little journey watching the two of yous. Hopefully, in the future I’m in a similar situation with my own son,” Carragher, whose son James plays for League One side Wigan, said. “Peter, you should be really proud of Kasper, who’s been fantastic … It’s been really nice.”
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