Manuel Neuer makes strict Harry Kane demand ahead of Lazio vs Bayern Munich in Champions League

Manuel Neuer has made a strict demand to his Bayern Munich teammates ahead of their Champions League clash against Lazio after Harry Kane failed to find the net last weekend.

Kane was limited to just one shot and 18 touches of the ball on Saturday afternoon as Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen extended their lead at the top of the table to five points.

It was an unusually quiet outing for Kane, who has scored 24 goals in 21 league games for Bayern this season. In fact, he failed to create a single chance against Xabi Alonso's side in the 3-0 defeat.

The Bavarians will be looking to bounce back from that loss in their Champions league last 16 clash with Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday night.

But ahead of this evening's fixture, Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer has admitted that his teammates are yet to come to terms with the defeat against Leverkusen.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Neuer said: "We haven't quite gotten over it. When you lose like that, it does something with you. We've spoken about it, analysed it and been clear about it.

"The good thing is we've got a game straight after. We want to get to the next round. We want to make up for things that we didn't do well in Leverkusen."

Neuer added: "It's important that we stick at it. It's a new competition, a new day. Even when Bayern Munich lose, the sun still rises. We're looking forward to the game."

Neuer is also aware that his teammates must provide more service for Harry Kane after their lacklustre performance on Saturday – and issued a strict demand.

"We didn't play in a clever way," he added. "Our positioning wasn't how we'd planned. Harry Kane needs to be fed by us. When we feed him, he's a phenomenon.

"We need to make sure he gets into dangerous areas with the ball so we can have success."

Image credit: Getty

Bayern manager Thomas Tuchel has also delivered a similar message to his players.

"It was rare for Harry to have so few touches (against Leverkusen)," he said. "The formation was actually thought of with him in mind, but we didn’t find him at all. We want to get Harry in the game more, and we need to fix it.

"I’m convinced we can show a reaction (against Lazio). It wasn’t good enough in Leverkusen. But it’s a new opponent, a new competition. I hope we can make up for it."

Topics: Harry Kane, Bayern Munich, Lazio, Bundesliga, Manuel Neuer

Jack Kenmare

Senior Journalist at SPORTbible with a passion for long-form journalism. Almost 10 years’ experience across online and print.

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