Bayern Munich dominates RB Salzburg in 5-0 friendly triumph

Bayern Munich kicked off 2026 with a commanding 5-0 victory over RB Salzburg in their sole pre-Bundesliga friendly. 

Amid a challenging week for 17-year-old prodigy Lennart Karl, the young star demonstrated remarkable resilience, netting two goals and providing an assist in a standout second-half display.

The Bavarians were without key players Jamal Musiala and Manuel Neuer, who stayed behind, while Alphonso Davies and Sacha Boey sat out due to illness. 

Head coach Vincent Kompany assured fans that the absentees should return within weeks. The match began with an immediate scare as Hiroki Itō and Sota Kitano clashed in the opening seconds, but both shook off the knocks to continue.

As anticipated, Bayern controlled possession, though it took 20 minutes for their first real threat. 

Salzburg goalkeeper Alexander Schlager denied Michael Olise’s signature right-wing strike, and Wisdom Mike soon fired wide from the left. Jonas Urbig, in Bayern’s net, parried Kitano’s long-range effort around the half-hour mark. 

Salzburg nearly struck first when David Santos Daiber cleared Edmund Baidoo’s goal-line scramble, and Kitano later grazed the side netting.

The breakthrough arrived just before halftime. Schlager saved Harry Kane’s shot, but Bayern capitalized on the rebound. Itō’s edge-of-the-box drive took a deflection off Jannik Schuster to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.

Both teams overhauled their lineups at the break, injecting fresh energy. Bayern asserted dominance with Luis Díaz, Serge Gnabry, Karl, and Felipe Chávez probing forward. 

Christian Zawieschitzky thwarted early attempts from Karl and Gnabry, while Chávez missed from close range. The teenager then turned creator, setting up Karl for a cool finish to make it 2-0.

Roles flipped minutes later as Karl teed up Chávez for the third. Salzburg’s 18-year-old Kerim Alajbegovic rattled the crossbar from a free-kick, but Karl persisted, seeing a shot cleared off the line before heading in his second from Díaz’s assist. 

In the 88th minute, Kompany subbed off the “Man of the Match” Karl for Maycon Cardozo, who promptly lobbed an assist for Tom Bischof’s injury-time strike, sealing the 5-0 rout.

Bayern now turns their attention to Bundesliga resumption at home against VfL Wolfsburg on Sunday.