analysis
FC Bayern lost without a hitch in Leverkusen. After the harmless appearance, there are rumblings at the record champions: coach Thomas Tuchel is being criticized for his line-up. Thomas Müller questions his team’s attitude.
The sting after that bitter 0-3 defeat at Bayer Leverkusen was deeply felt by the Munich people who were used to success. After the final whistle, the players listened with their heads hanging as Leverkusen cheered in front of their own fans. Xabi Alonso’s team dominated the game for 90 minutes and impressed with refreshing football. The game was perhaps something of an anticipated final in the fight for the German championship – Bayer is now five points ahead of Bayern.
Even before kick-off, football Germany was puzzling: What was Thomas Tuchel’s line-up supposed to be? What tactics does the Bayern coach pursue? The 50-year-old sent a formation onto the field in this important game that no one expected. National player Joshua Kimmich sat on the bench and 19-year-old Aleksandar Pavlovic played for him. Defensively, Tuchel surprised with a five or Three-man chain – without Matthijs de Ligt, but with new signing Eric Dier, Asian Cup returnees Minjae Kim and Dayot Upamecano. Winter signing Sacha Boey was in the starting line-up for the first time.
Did the team lack experience?
What FC Bayern showed in the top game was disappointing. Once again vulnerable in defense, there weren’t enough passes from midfield and superstar Harry Kane remained colorless with 18 (!) ball contacts throughout the game. In the 60th minute, Tuchel reacted and brought in experienced players with Kimmich and Thomas Müller when the score was 0:2 – but even these changes did not show any change in Bayern’s game.
For many observers, Tuchel was the main culprit for the well-deserved 3-0 defeat and the coach became the focus of criticism. And he declared contritely that he “always takes responsibility for the tactics. So it goes without saying that I would take them on today too.” But the defeat “had nothing to do with tactics.” The result doesn’t prove him right. “But we prepared well for a week,” assured the coach.
Bayern boss Dreesen: “We have to ask the coach”
And how does FC Bayern’s management react after Tuchel’s tactical experiments didn’t pay off? Dreesen said he didn’t want to speculate about the ideas behind setting up the Bayern team with a three-man defense. After a good initial phase, the team lost track. “Why is that? There are experts for that. We have to ask the coach,” explained CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen.
But the Bayern boss didn’t want to allow a coaching debate to arise. “Nothing changes at all,” said Dreesen when asked about further collaboration with the head coach. When asked, the CEO replied: “I don’t like to repeat myself.”
Müller takes the team to task and Tuchel to protect them
Thomas Müller also didn’t want to have a coaching discussion. Immediately after the final whistle he gave “Sky” an extremely emotional interview. The original Bavarian is known for not mincing his words – but he has never been seen this upset before. He criticized the players’ attitude in clear words: “I’m missing – now we can quote our Oliver Kahn – some of the balls and this freedom. We have a mentality in our game, especially with the ball,” said the 34-year-old. In training, the team shows “significantly better approaches because we are brave because we play football there.”
Müller emphasized that this was not criticism of coach Tuchel. “We had enough players of international caliber on the pitch that you don’t need to go to the coach,” said the 34-year-old. “What I’m talking about are decisions, especially with the ball, that has something to do with game intelligence, with independence.”
Joshua Kimmich confirmed Müller’s thesis. In training everything is going according to plan, but “in general there is little to be seen in the game of joy, creativity, ease and freedom. We have real problems creating opportunities for ourselves.”
Intense days lie ahead for FC Bayern
There are difficult days and weeks ahead for FC Bayern and Tuchel. The round of 16 in the Champions League against Lazio Rome is scheduled for Wednesday. Dreesen gave the coach and the team an announcement for the game in Rome. “After a game like this, where we were clearly the worse team, you have to collect yourself and look forward,” he said. The first leg of the round of 16 in the premier class is an “opportunity to repair the gap.” If that doesn’t succeed, Säbener Straße will face a turbulent time.
In the video: Thomas Tuchel after the game in Leverkusen
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Source: Blickpunkt Sport February 11, 2024 – 9:45 p.m
