Kane’s fitting finale as Bayern end high-scoring season in style
Bayern Munich started the season with a 2-1 win over VfB Stuttgart in the German Super Cup, clinched another Bundesliga title with a 4-2 win over them and so it was only fitting that they ended a near-perfect campaign with a 3-0 win in their last encounter to finally win the German Cup again.
Stuttgart are one of Germany’s best teams but, like most others, have found no answer to Bayern’s ruthless scoring machine led by Harry Kane.
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The England captain single-handedly scored nine of Bayern’s 14 goals against Stuttgart, with Bayern also winning the other Bundesliga match 5-0.
Kane sensational
Kane’s hat-trick on Saturday saw him finish the season with 61 goals in 51 matches in all competitions and he has now won four trophies with Bayern since arriving in 2023 from Tottenham Hotspur without a single one.
“It was definitely one of the best nights of my career. I was looking forward to this final so much. I had heard so much about all the players who had already experienced this final with the club,” he said.
“I wanted to make the team proud, I wanted to make the fans proud. And to score a hat-trick in the final, it’s just such a special game and a special feeling. I’m so proud of it. It’s been a long and difficult season. To end it like this is perfect.”
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Double but no treble
Bayern won the German Cup for the first time since 2020 when they secured a treble by also winning the Champions League. Failure to participate in the European final next Saturday was the only downside for hungry Bayern, who narrowly escaped in the semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain.
But that didn’t dampen the mood on Saturday evening, as sports board member Max Eberl said: “The whole season has been extraordinary. We really deserve to win the double. The cup returns to Munich – the crowning glory of an incredible season.”
“Obviously the team does its part, but we’re so lucky with our offense. And Harry’s just got something special, so we’re really happy to have him,” he added.
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Elegant offensive trio
The numbers prove him right as forwards Kane, Michael Olise and Luis Diaz have scored all of Bayern’s 17 goals in the Cup, 66 of their record 122 in the Bundesliga and 26 of their 43 in the Champions League.
Including the Super Cup, the trio scored 109 goals while Olise had 22 goals and 26 assists and summer signing Diaz had 26 goals and 19 assists.
Bayern have lost just three of their 55 matches in all competitions in 2025-26, against Augsburg in the Bundesliga and against Champions League finalists Arsenal and PSG in Europe.
Lots of resilience
This is partly due to the attackers, but also to the whole team who almost always found their way back when opponents exposed coach Vincent Kompany’s risky, high-pressing game plan.
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Bayern won 3-0 at halftime in Mainz, 2-0 in the 81st minute in Freiburg and drew 1-1 with nine men against 2024 champions Bayer Leverkusen, to name just three games.
Bayern also struggled in the first half on Saturday against an aggressive Stuttgart side before securing victory.
“All season we had games where we had to overcome adversity, where we were down or down a man. We had to fight our way through, but from the end of the first half we showed our quality,” Eberl said.
Kompany said: “This team always manages to raise its level.”
Now the World Cup
Despite missing out on the Champions League final, the season is not over for most of Bayern’s players as they rejoin their national team for the World Cup – with England particularly hoping Kane can make the difference and help them win for the first time since 1966.
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“I can’t wait for this World Cup, I’m ready to go. Right now I’m as good as I can be. That’s the goal, to win another gold trophy and we know what that would mean for everyone in England,” Kane said.
Kane speaks and next team
Bayern’s sporting management will meanwhile be working on the squad for 2026-27, with Newcastle United midfielder Anthony Gordon reportedly their main target.
German midfielder Leon Goretzka leaves after eight years, as do versatile Raphael Guerreiro and striker Nicolas Jackson. The futures of injury-prone full-back Alphonso Davies and centre-back Kim Minjae are reportedly unclear.
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Kane and Olise were declared absolutely unsaleable. Negotiations with Kane, who has a deal until 2027, are expected to begin soon and Bayern honorary president Uli Hoeness said “both parties are happy with each other.”
But overall, Bayern want more youth and lower wages and, in this regard, they have high hopes for teenager Lennart Karl, who has had a breakthrough season taking him all the way to the World Cup, and his compatriot Tom Bischof.
Jonas Urbig, who also played on Saturday, proved to be a more than solid replacement for veteran Manuel Neuer in goal.
The World Cup will curtail pre-season training before Bayern begin the new campaign on August 22 against Borussia Dortmund. The Bundesliga begins a week later.
