Harry Kane praised Bayern Munich for their remarkable mentality following their incredible comeback from a three-goal deficit to defeat Mainz 4-3 on Saturday.
This victory marked only the third instance in Bundesliga history of a team rallying from a 3-0 halftime deficit to win, the first occurrence since 1980. Additionally, it was Bayern’s first win after trailing by three or more goals in any competition since 1988.
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This game also marked Bayern Munich’s eighth comeback victory in the league this season, tying the record set by Bayer Leverkusen in the 1999-2000 season for the most comebacks in a single Bundesliga campaign.
“At halftime, we acknowledged that we needed to increase our energy and intensity,” Kane said. “You could see that from the very start of the second half. Of course, we needed to display quality as well, and we did that with our goals.”
“Kudos to everyone; coming back from 3-0 down at halftime reflects the mentality we possess.”
Bayern arrived in Mainz in high spirits following their Bundesliga championship win the previous weekend and their advance to the German Cup final after defeating Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday.
However, Mainz took a well-deserved 3-0 lead at halftime against a heavily rotated Bayern team, which saw Kane, Jamal Musiala, and Michael Olise among those starting on the bench, likely to rest for Tuesday’s Champions League semifinal first leg against Paris Saint-Germain.
Mainz’s goals were tallied by Dominik Kohr, Paul Nebel, and Sheraldo Becker.
“The first half was challenging,” Kane remarked. “We didn’t play at our usual standard regarding how we approach every match. Our defensive coverage was lacking, and we were a bit careless with the ball.”
Bayern’s coach, Vincent Kompany, made tactical adjustments at halftime by substituting in Kane and Olise for Luis Díaz and Aleksandar Pavlovic, all of whom are likely to feature in the upcoming match against PSG.
Nicolas Jackson began the comeback in the 53rd minute, followed by Olise’s brilliant strike inside the far post in the 73rd minute, and Musiala equalized in the 81st.
Kane then netted the winner just two minutes later, converting the rebound after Daniel Batz saved Musiala’s attempt.
This marked Kane’s 53rd goal across all competitions this season, the highest total by a player from a club in Europe’s top five leagues since Robert Lewandowski scored 55 for Bayern in the 2019-20 season.
“It felt like we could’ve scored four or five before the break,” Kompany said. “It then comes down to quality and mentality. The way the team responded in the second half was remarkable… We celebrated as if we had avoided relegation. I adore this kind of mentality.”
“When you need a miracle towards the end of the season, you can’t come from ground zero; you must build a sense of belief and that was evident today, which is foundational for me.”
Contributions from ESPN Research and The Associated Press.