Kompany lauds ´dangerous´ Karl after record-breaking Champions League goal

Vincent Kompany hailed Lennart Karl’s importance to Bayern Munich after the youngster made Champions League history in their win over Sporting CP.

Karl scored for the third Champions League match in a row, putting Bayern ahead in the 69th minute and setting them on course for their 3-1 comeback victory.

Serge Gnabry had cancelled out Joshua Kimmich’s own goal before that, while Jonathan Tah rounded off the scoring to send Bayern joint-top of the table, ahead of Arsenal’s match on Wednesday.

But Karl stole the headlines as, aged 17 years and 290 days, he became the youngest player in the competition’s history (since 1992-93) to score in three consecutive appearances.

He helped to ensure Bayern continued their impressive home record in the league/group phase of the Champions League – they are now unbeaten in their last 37 such matches (W35 D2), dating back to December 2013.

And Kompany was thrilled with Karl’s performance, though he admitted the teenager could have had an even bigger influence on the match.

“Lennart is always dangerous. To be honest, he’s played better games for us, but he’s always there,” Kompany told DAZN.

“When he gets his moments, he just finishes. That’s important for us.”

3 – Bayern’s Lennart Karl is the youngest player in the history of the UEFA Champions League (since 1992-93) to score in three consecutive appearances, aged 17 years and 290 days today. Diamond. pic.twitter.com/izDbFN4Lif

— OptaFranz (@OptaFranz) December 9, 2025

And Kompany was thrilled with the fighting nature his full team showed, adding, “Sporting is a tough opponent; they’re in the top eight of the Champions League for a reason.

“We stayed calm after going behind.”

Kimmich, whose own goal was the first Bayern have conceded since August 2020 against Barcelona, hinted that Karl’s performances should lead to a place in the Germany set-up.

“I assume that Lenny will continue to get playing time with us,” Kimmich said.

“Currently, he has broken into the starting eleven, and every regular player at Bayern Munich – especially now, the way we are playing – also belongs in the national team.”