Bayern Munich youngster Antonio Tikvic was apparently praised by the whole dressing room for the way he played against Manchester City star Erling Haaland on Tuesday.
Pep Guardiola’s side ran out 2-1 winners in their last game out in Japan against the German giants.
James McAtee got the ball rolling for City after great work by the outstanding Rico Lewis.
He tapped in after Lewis found Julian Alvarez, who saw his shot blocked.
Mathys Til equalised for Bayern without 10 to go.
But Aymeric Laporte then popped up a few minutes later to score and give City the victory.
It was another useful exercise for Guardiola’s side, who are now in South Korea ready for their next game against Atletico Madrid.
Pre-season friendlies are always good for getting a look at players who perhaps don’t feature too much. Or to see players who are just breaking through.
And it seems Bayern have a very promising player in their ranks…
Antonio Tikvic received praise from the Bayern squad after his display against Erling Haaland
For the second-half of the game on Tuesday, Pep Guardiola threw on Haaland.
The Norwegian had grabbed a couple of goals against Yokohama F.Marinos, and was looking to get his form going against the Bavarians.
But Thomas Tuchel made subs of his own at half-time, including Antonio Tikvic coming on at centre-back.
Tikvic, an 18-year-old Croatian youth international, has received a pretty nice write-up from one of the biggest publications in Germany, Bild, after Tuesday’s game.
They said that the teenager was able to ‘eliminate’ £51 million superstar Haaland, with ‘clever positional play and strong use of his height’.
Apparently, it was felt that the youngster was so good, he received praise from Tuchel and the whole Bayern squad back in the changing rooms after the game.
Tikvic a name to look out for
Tikvic is certainly a name worth looking out for.
He hasn’t made his first-team debut in a competitive match yet. And he actually doesn’t even have a professional contract yet.
But Tikvic looks a player with a very bright future. And he’ll certainly take real confidence from how he fared against the world’s best number nine in Haaland.
He is described by Bild as a ‘an elegant player with a good left foot’.
One wonders if in a few years, he might be a player City come calling for.
