Die Folgen: Bayern’s 5-0 win over Stuttgart (Bavarian Football Works)
Bayern Munich entered its Bundesliga match vs. VfB Stuttgart a little tired, a little beat up, and — apparently — very hungry to put on a great performance.
Behind a heavily-rotated lineup from head coach
Vincent Kompany, Bayern Munich got out to an early lead and never looked back. The Bavarians put a 5-0 beatdown on a stunned VfB Stuttgart side that looked like it had no idea what had hit them in the second half.
While the rotation did its job, it was the entry of Harry Kane into the match, that sealed the win as the Englishman scored a hat-trick in under 30 minutes of play. Let’s get to it…here are some quick hitters on the match:
- As always, let’s begin with a look at the starting XI:
- Kompany went to his bench for this one and made several key moves. Jonas Urbig stepped in at goalkeeper for Manuel Neuer, which was probably a week to late, but it worked out nonetheless. Urbig needed minute and facing a good VfB Stuttgart attack was a challenge for him. Otherwise, Raphaël Guerreiro played the No. 10 position, but was not great. Leon Goretzka started next to Joshua Kimmich in the central midfield, while Tom Bischof played left-back and Nicolas Jackson started at striker, and Kim Min-jae stepped in for Jonathan Tah.
- Bischof was given a big challenge against a good VfB Stuttgart side. It did not go as Kompany wanted.
- Tah looked cooked in the last match, so starting Kim was fully expected.
- Jackson just does not move as much as needed and is an odd fit into what Bayern Munich wants to do offensively.
- Kimmich had a horrific turnover early on what should have been a goal for VfB Stuttgart. This is how you know that Kimmich needs a rest. This has happened a few times of late with Kimmich. There is nothing wrong with sitting Kimmich down and getting him fresh.
- That gaffe aside, the Bayern Munich midfield started strong, but it was outnumbered, which eventually took its toll on Kimmich and Goretzka. For whatever reason, Guerreiro stayed high and did not support as much as needed, which was disappointing from the veteran.
- Not too much later, Urbig sent a deep ball to Laimer, who had a great run (taking advantage of lax defending from Jamie Leweling). Laimer connected with Michael Olise, who slid a pass back to Laimer for a beautiful back-heel goal. The whole sequence could be a great candidate for Bayern Munich’s goal of the season.
- In the 35th, Olise almost shot a ball under Alexander Nübel that almost snuck in. It was a shaky half for Nübel.
- In the 40th minute, VfB Stuttgart was ruled offside on a free kick that resulted in a goal. Kimmich made the late step to push Nikolas Nartey offside.
- Sebastian Hoeneß seemed to adjust his plan and target Bischof, who is not really a left-back. Bischof was having some issues and his performance left a lot to be desired. This match, though, was a massive step up in terms of a challenge for Bischof in playing the position.
- VfB Stuttgart played extremely well in the latter stages of the first half, but it was to no avail as Bayern Munich went into halftime leading 1-0.
- After the break, Kompany made one move that was predictable — Josip Stanišić for Bischof. What was a little disappointing was that Kompany did not shift Bischof to the central midfield. It was good to see Bischof get some starting minutes, but if Kompany cannot trust him to play over a clearly tired Kimmich, an unconfident Goretzka, or a detached Guerreiro, it might tell us that the coach does not trust the youngster fully just yet.
- One thing is certain — if Bischof does not start getting minutes in the central midfield, it could give the player a sign that he might need to assess his situation.
- Maximilian Mittelstädt is a fine player. In fact, he is a really good player. However, leaving him one-on-one with Olise was…something. Almost no teams go man-on-man with Olise because they double-team him. VfB Stuttgart really decided to roll the dice. Mittelstädt did well at times, but it was an interesting strategy to say the least.
- In the 57th minute, Stanišić made an awesome play as he trekked all the way across the field to the right side to cut off a streaking Leweling to prevent what would have been a good scoring chance.
- Urbig made an outstanding save on a deflected shot from Deniz Undav in the 59th minute that put the young goalkeeper’s athleticism on display.
- In the 60th minute, Kompany was done messing around, as he brought in Harry Kane, Lennart Karl, and Aleksandar Pavlović for Jackson, Guerreiro, and Goretzka. None of the subbed out players was overly great.
- Not to nitpick the coach, but with Pavlović picking up a knock earlier in the week and already being a little banged up from the international break, wouldn’t it have made sense to have just let Bischof stay in the game and send Goretzka to the bench when Stanišić came on? Pavlović has not exactly been “Mr. Durability” and he will be a key player for the rest of this season. That move just did not compute with this writer.
- In the 62nd minute, Luis Díaz picked up his fifth yellow card of the season in the Bundesliga, so he will miss the Mainz 05 game next weekend — just a day after finding out his Champions League suspension was reduced from three games to two games. Díaz giveth, Díaz taketh away.
- A minute later, we saw vintage “early season Díaz” as he missed a complete sitter (yes, the pass from Olise could have been better). Ultimately, the play was ruled offside, so we will all wipe that one from our memory, right?
- In the 66th minute, Kane probably secured Nübel’s lack of a future with Bayern Munich as he hit a hard, bounding groundball from distance that caught the goalkeeper sleeping and made the game 2-0.
- Unfortunately for Nübel, he can do a lot of good things, but then he always has something like that in his back pocket. It would have been a tough save, sure, but the ESPN broadcast said it had a 3% chance of going in. Kane + Nübel = defying the odds!
- Kane’s playmaking was evident from the time he stepped on the pitch. What a fine player he is.
- If Kane killed Nübel’s Bayern Munich career, Stanišić drove the final nail in the coffin after he blasted a shot right at the goalkeeper after a nice drop-pass from Díaz. The shot had great pace, but Nübel should have made the complete save. Instead, he saw the ball bounce off of him and watched helplessly as it trickled over the goal-line.
- There is this weird subculture within Bayern Munich fans that doubts Urbig, but all he does is perform.
- In the 81st minute, VfB Stuttgart’s Lorenz Assignon was whistled for a handball on the goal-line, which resulted in a red card. Kane stepped to the spot and made it 4-0 with the penalty.
- Laimer might be the most fit guy on the planet. How does he stay so energetic?
- In the 88th minute, Olise whistled in a cross toward Kane, who only needed a slight touch to beat Nübel. The way Kane opened up his foot to angle the deflection is something young strikers should study for finishing in tight spaces.
- Going back to Mittelstädt, he did not win every duel with Olise, but how this guy is not on the German national team these days is a mystery. By far, Mittelstädt was VfB Stuttgart’s best player on the day — with the most difficult assignment.
- Overall, in a game with a heavy rotation, Bayern Munich did well. Hopefully this gives the manager some confidence in going to his bench more. It is not in Kompany’s nature to really want to rotate, but he needs to with this roster not being as deep at the moment (things will change when Alphonso Davies and Jamal Musiala comeback). All that said, Bayern Munich went into a hostile environment, handled the situation well, and came out with a hard-earned three points. You cannot ask for much more than that.
If you missed our Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, or Postgame Podcast, give them a look or a listed:
Gunners also want Brown (ESPN)
Arsenal is reportedly ready to make a move for Eintracht Frankfurt left-back Nathaniel Brown:
Real Madrid, Arsenal and Manchester United have also been scouting Frankfurt left back Nathaniel Brown for months, as reported by Sport Bild. They go as far as suggesting that the 22-year-old’s departure from the Bundesliga club is “practically sealed” due to Frankfurt having to offload him. Brown has represented Germany’s national team twice and made his senior international debut in October.
Brown is quickly becoming one of more sought-after left-backs in Europe. It seems inevitable that Eintracht Frankfurt will get a nice offer for him over the summer.
Bayern out on Grimaldo (Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg)
Those rumors linking Bayern Munich to Bayer Leverkusen star Alejandro Grimaldo are false per Florian Plettenberg:
🚨🛑 Rumours linking FC Bayern with Alejandro #Grimaldo are wide of the mark as reported.
He is a top and experienced left wing-back, but he is currently not a topic for Bayern, and a summer move appears highly unlikely.
Eberl touts Neuer (Sport Bild via @iMiaSanMia)
Manuel Neuer might be creeping up there in age, but you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who does not think the world of the team captain…including board member for sport Max Eberl.
“Manuel Neuer is an outstanding captain and a great support for our team. He has played a major role in our development over the past few months and in where we are at the moment,” said Eberl.
Neuer got a rest on Saturday in the win over VfB Stuttgart, which should make him sharp for this tough homestretch of the Hinrunde.
Karl not sweating expectations (DFB via @iMiaSanMia)
Bayern Munich phenom Lennart Karl is not worried about the heavy expectations being placed on him.
“My agent and my parents are a great help. I try to largely ignore what’s written about me on social media. Of course, I’m happy when positive things are written about me. However, every career has its low points, during which you shouldn’t let the news get to you too much, as it can affect your performance,” said Karl.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
