Eight days ago at the Parc des Princes, Michael Olise confirmed his status as a thrilling player by being PSG’s real nightmare. A scorer with an ability to emerge in space and outrun the Parisian defense with every effort, he produced an almost perfect copy and above all allowed his team to have the hope of a comeback at the Allianz Arena. Last night for the return, the Bavarians needed him like never before. They expected him to once again be that uncontrollable, unpredictable player, capable of solving insurmountable collective problems on his own. It didn’t happen. The magic just wasn’t there tonight.
Bayern have passed through him countless times. With each restart, with each unbalanced situation sought, the ball tirelessly returned to Olise. The team relied almost entirely on him to find the offensive solution as if to make him understand “go save us once again”. And maybe that’s where the problem lies. By dint of being the systematic option, it has become predictable. PSG knew it, expected it, always placed itself ahead of its calls. It’s not that Nuno Mendes produced an imperial performance, the Parisian full-back also had his moments of hesitation. It’s simply that for his part, Olise never had that little something extra, that impulse that made the difference. Less explosive than last week, less sharp in his decision-making, he gave the impression of a player short of resources in the most important moment.
Too busy, too predictable
The figures also confirm this trend. Only 38% of duels won and above all 33% of successful dribbles, the lowest total of the entire Bavarian team in this match. Figures that sum up an evening without. Imprecise in his passes, unable to create the combination with Kane, Musiala or even Laimer to really make the Parisian defense suffer, he turned in circles in a straight lane which was never a serious threat. And even when Kompany tried to surround him a little more with the entry of Jackson in front, it did not bear fruit.
And obviously without a great Olise, Bayern simply did not have the means to overthrow this PSG. This 1-1 draw and the elimination of Bayern should obviously not erase what Olise has produced since the start of the season. Best player in the Bundesliga, 24 goals and 17 assists in all competitions, he was one of the very best players in Europe in 2025-2026. But in football, the big matches are played back and forth, and on this return the Frenchman was a little eclipsed by the XXL performance of Kvaratskhelia. It’s that simple.
