Bayern Munich delivered a dominant 6-1 victory over Atalanta in their UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg, signaling strong prospects for a quarterfinal berth despite the absence of South Korean national team center-back Kim Min-jae.
Munich crushed the Italian side at Stadio di Bergamo on Tuesday, with Michael Olise recording two goals and one assist while Serge Gnabry and Nicolas Jackson each contributed a goal and an assist. The comprehensive away win means Bayern need only avoid a defeat by five or more goals in the second leg at home on March 19 to secure their place in the quarterfinals.
Bayern opened the scoring just 12 minutes in. Following a short corner on the right, Gnabry delivered the ball into the box where Josip Stanišić tapped it home. Olise extended the lead with a left-footed strike from distance in the 22nd minute, and Gnabry added a third three minutes later with a right-footed shot from the center of the penalty area.
The German giants continued their scoring spree after halftime. Jackson made it 4-0 in the 52nd minute, finishing a counterattack with a right-footed shot after receiving a pass from Luis Díaz. Olise netted his second in the 64th minute, and Jamal Musiala added a sixth five minutes later. Atalanta avoided a shutout when Mario Pašalić scored a consolation goal in stoppage time.