The clash against Arsenal FC was another game where Bayern Munich drop points late in the Champions League, and it is starting to get frustrating. Bayern Munich now sit at 14th place in the Champions League Group Stage table, and it looks like it will be an uphill battle to qualify in the top 8 at this point. Bayern Munich now have just one win in their last 4 fixtures, and the upcoming schedule is not getting any easier. Nonetheless, here are the Match Awards for the game:
Jersey Swap: Declan Rice
What a player and what
a performance. The midfield juggernaut can do anything, and that was evident in his display both in attack and defense during this match. Rice was the thorn in Bayern’s side all match, and scored the goal that stole the point on the road for Arsenal.
Talk about a player that any club in the world would want on their team.
Der Kaiser: Manuel Neuer
Wow, does it feel good to nominate Neuer as ‘Der Kaiser’ today. However, this award is not one of nostalgia or pity as Neuer is the deserving man today. While Neuer hasn’t shown that he is able to be consistenly relied on to deliver big performances, you can’t help but smile when he does.
Most notably, his outstanding goal line save to keep Bayern Munich in the game was a gamechanger, and the outcome of the match could have drastically changed if he had not been able to stop the Arsenal attack. However, he conceded two goals, and it does appear that Neuer’s reactions from in close on those tight angles might be an opporunity for teams to further exploit.
Some might argue that Dayot Upamecano is a better option for this award, and that would be a fair argument as well.
Fußballgott: Tom Bischof
Devastating news hit the Kimmich family as Joshua’s father passed away this week. Joshua got some deserved time off to spend with his family, but it certainly begged the question whether Tom Bischof had the experience to jump into a match of this magnitude.
Bischof was clearly more than up for the challenge and did an excellent job at keeping one of the world’s best teams at bay, and contributing in some great build-up play as well. His performance didn’t steal the show by any means, but it is an incredibly impressive one at his age.
The future is bright for the kid, and clearly he is ready to compete, and perhaps has been for a long time.
Der Bomber: Harry Kane
Harry Kane delivered yet another strong performance. His assist and brilliantly taken penalty were crucial to Bayern Munich’s success in this match. Ultimately, the defense let him down and hopefully that doesn’t start to become a common theme this eason.
The Ballon d’Or favorite did everything he could have done getting two goal contributions against a team known for their defensive grit.
Meister of the Match: Alphonso Davies
Perhaps Bayern don’t need a back-up at left wing after all? The Canadian speedster was more than up for the role, one in which he frequents for his national team, but not one he often plays at for Bayern. Either way, Davies excelled at left-back and his explosiveness caused all sorts of problems for an Arsenal defense, that was otherwise difficult to breakdown.
While Nathaniel Brown hasn’t completely locked down the left-back position this season, Kompany can certainly explore the option of rotating Davies up and down the left flank as needed. Davies seems to be a man on a mission this season, and Bayern are all the better for it.
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