Bayern Hold Their Nerve as Leverkusen Relive Penalty Heartbreak in German Cup

Bayern Munich edged Bayer Leverkusen after a penalty shootout on Wednesday, booking their place in the German Cup semi-final. After 120 scoreless minutes, Manuel Neuer prevailed over Bernd Leno as the visitors converted all five of their spot-kicks at the BayArena, all but ending any hopes of Roger Schmidt's side claiming silverware this season.

It was a big win for Bayern, who entered the game with a squad severely depleted by injuries and suffered a further blow when Mehdi Benatia limped off shortly after the half-hour mark. Yet just as in their win against Dortmund on Saturday, the Bavarians played a gritty, defensive game and held firm.

Just as at the Signal-Iduna Park, they were out-shot by greater than a 2-to-1 ratio (on Wednesday the final count was 18-to-8, according to the official Bundesliga live ticker) yet never looked against the ropes.

Even as the game went to the lottery of penalties and they faced a formidable stopper in Leno, they were always favorites. Guardiola, watching from a chair, embodied the attitude of his team: cool and collected, even as they faced a do-or-die task.

Bayern played without Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, David Alaba and Bastian Schweinsteiger; and Philipp Lahm and Thiago Alcantara had only returned to the pitch for the first time in months or more just days before.

Yet despite all the absentees, Pep Guardiola managed to field a front three that featured arguably the world's best striker in Robert Lewandowski, who was flanked by two world champions in Thomas Muller and Mario Gotze. Although Bayern's chances were limited, they could well have scored if not for a brilliant one-on-one save by Leno from Muller or a bit more accurate finishing.

Bayern actually put the ball in the back of the net in the second half, but Lewandowski's goal was disallowed for a very questionable foul.

For Leverkusen, defeat came in an all too familiar way. Just weeks after being eliminated from the Champions League by Atletico in spot-kicks, they crashed out of the Pokal in the same way. It was an another enormous disappointment for Roger Schmidt's side, who were by no means the worse team against neither the Spanish champions nor Bayern.

The Werkself played their hearts out in both instances and in the end, had nothing to show. Their performances signal progress, but there's still a distinct lack of cutting edge. As dangerous as their attack may be, Leverkusen are missing the magic of a Kevin de Bruyne or Marco Reus type as well as a reliable finisher.

It cost them in the Champions League, in which they could easily have put two or three goals past Atleti in the first leg, and it cost them again in the German Cup.

Leverkusen fans will rue the decision of referee Felix Zwayer not to award Thiago a red card for a Nigel de Jong-esque boot that nearly left cleat marks on Stefan Kiessling's face at the end of regular time, but they could hardly complain after Lewandowski's disallowed goal.

After two similar instances of heartbreak, there's no denying that Schmidt needs a bit more incision up front. That might have come from Arkadiusz Milik had they not allowed a €2.5 million purchase clause in his loan to Ajax, which was activated last week.

In the end, the manner in which Bayern won was fitting for their performance and true to the club's narrative in recent days. Against the odds, they found a way through to the semi-finals. In Dortmund, efficiency characterized their win, especially when compared with the entire lack thereof that their hosts showed.

In Leverkusen, Guardiola's side showed efficiency in the form of going five-for-five in penalties, a rarity for German sides nowadays. In the penalty shootout they were cool, collected and deadly.

It begged the question: If this is how effective an understaffed Bayern side playing poorly (by their lofty standards) can be, is there anything that can stop them?

@Mr_Bundesliga