Four Observations from Bayern Munich’s 2-1 win against PSV Eindhoven

The 2003 hit “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” is rather relevant to Bayern Munich’s current scenario. For one, most Bayern fans are praying their hardest that Leon Goretzka leave before the transfer window closes. Second, the iconic line “drama, drama, drama” is an excellent description of the current ongoings at Bayern. Whether it be the shocking Augsburg loss or tonight, drama seems to love the club.

Bayern wrap up the league phase of the Champions League with a dramatic 2-1 win against PSV Eindhoven. The game featured Jamal Musiala’s first start following injury and several interesting changes to the lineup. Here are the observations from the game.

It makes sense why Paul Wanner chose PSV

PSV Eindhoven was a pleasant surprise of a team. The Dutch side featuring Bayern alumni like Ivan Perišić and Paul Wanner, put up a good fight. It was clear they were in desperate need of a win, or at minimum, a draw. After all, if they wanted to stay in the Champions League, they needed to make a play-off position, which would only be possible if they collected points from tonight.

The team as a whole, was relentless. Loose balls pursued, lapses in judgement pounced upon. To the dying moments of the game, their ambition remained clear and they continued to fight — for all they wanted was a point. Case in point, Ismail Saibari’s goal.

Ismael Saibari landed upon a Harry Kane error and revived his team’s hopes of making it further in Champions League. With a loose ball off Bayern’s talisman, the 25-year-old made a run, makes a pass to Guus Til, who then assists in his finish. What Bayern can learn from here is the ruthlessness and vision needed to pounce upon a momentary error.

Unfortunately, PSV had to face Bayern. And Bayern loves comebacks.

I am not exactly a fan of The Weeknd — he makes enjoyable music and is currently fighting for a contract extension with us, but I know a starboy when I see one.

Bayern spent the entirety of the first half in a deadlock, frustrated. They were clearly the better side. There were multiple shots on target, and yet, there was no end result to speak for. Musiala and Co. put up a solid fight and it was clear that the second half was still time enough for the Bavarians to get the game back and win.

And hence in the 57th minute of the game, Jamal Musiala made it count.

A loose ball off PSV is taken upon by Tom Bischof, who then passes to Lennart Karl. Karl makes a run, while in contact with Musiala, the duo rapidly exchanging the ball. The #10 positions himself in the far right corner and takes a shot from an angle so obtuse and insanely difficult. And yet, it was the difficulty that made the finish all the more beautiful.

This overlap between Karl and Musiala has been dreamt of. The rapid sequential passing, the dribbling, and the finish — every facet of this goal showed the talent Bayern has sorely missed in the past several months. It was not only this goal. Throughout the game, the duo were seen passing to each other and linking up. Karl by himself, has proven to be an extraordinary talent and now in tandem with Musiala… the possibilities are endless.

And it also looks like Musiala has worked on his finishing in recovery. The world is not ready for this Bayern attack.

Squad depth — the endless battle

Bayern certainly cannot catch a break in terms of injuries — right as key players return after months, some more key players hit the bench with problems of their own. The re-entry of Alphonso Davies and Jamal Musiala was accompanied by Konrad Laimer and Josip Stanišić being sidelined.

However, this is the most complete the Bayern squad has looked in a very long time. There is no dearth of attacking players, with nearly every position facing strong competition. Harry Kane, Luis Díaz, Michael Olise, Serge Gnabry, Jamal Musiala, Lennart Karl, Nicolas Jackson, the list goes on.

Case in point, look at the substitutions in the 58th. Olise, Davies, Kane and Gnabry came on to replace Karl, Upamecano, Jackson and Musiala. It is this level of depth in attack that Bayern needs desperately to counter the terrible schedule with key fixtures.

The situation at the backline is bad enough on its own but it has some unintended effects. The midfield is now facing an acute shortage as a result of the situation at the backline; often Tom Bischof finds himself playing bizarre positions. One game it is left-back, and the next it is right-back and before you know it, he’s back in midfield with Aleksander Pavlović. Not to mention, a certain Leon Goretzka has also not featured much lately. With his future remaining ambiguous… the squad desperately needs bolstering in midfield.

But Swaz, we can talk about squad depth in any game, why this one?

I would argue that this game was a huge teaching moment with regard to depth. Take the Augsburg game — an overworked Bayern fell behind to a determined Augsburg side. Despite having been just three days ago, the difference between the two games has been heaven and earth. Tonight, Bayern showed what they can do with a better rested team. If Eberl and co. needed a reason to buy players, tonight was one. And thankfully, it did not come at the cost of winning. When lessons come this easy, one might as well take them.

What’s in a name position?

What is a position anyway? Modern football inverts everything. Defenders attack, attackers drop back, and Joshua Kimmich bags a 10 on Sofascore every few months. It’s a bizarre world we live in.

A player who can play comfortably in more than one position is the dream of every manager, but in Bayern it is an odd prerequisite of sorts. With Tom Bischof’s profile as a midfielder, perhaps Kompany and co. are praying that he turns out just like Konrad Laimer — a prolific defensive midfielder-turned-full-back.

With Kimmich’s strong disinterest in returning to the backline and the player shortage, Bischof found himself in an alien position — right-back.

But the 20-year-old is fantastic everywhere. Playing a heavily inverted position, Bischof was often far ahead of Kimmich, past the midfield. Taking notes from Laimer, but still staying conservative in comparison, the youngster was mostly contributing to build-up. He had the first chance of the game too, from set-piece. An excellent shot, and though it hit the crossbar, was promising enough. Looks like Kimmich’s days at setpiece duty might be numbered after all.

Bischof did a midfielder’s job from behind, and a defender’s job from up front. PSV was largely subdued despite their earnest attempts and the entire backline gave their best to keep them at bay.

Kimmich and Bischof often changed positions and this combination, as such, makes sense, when you realize that Kimmich stayed rather conservative and mostly mediated game tempo and control. Positions and roles do not really tally, but really that is the charm in modern football.

There is really only one thing that differentiates Kimmich and Bischof and that is not position, or skill, or experience, but the willingness to do what the team needs. Bayern do not want another Joshua Kimmich — for they want a Konrad Laimer, and it looks like Bischof might fit that mold after all.

Miscellaneous Observations

• Get this — Sacha Boey took a shot. The right-back attempted to take the rebound off Kane’s shot that was saved, but it went wide.
• Jonas Urbig deserves a lifetime contract for his phenomenal shot-stopping in the first half and his long balls in the second.
• Nicolas Jackson’s future at Bayern remains a huge question mark. His performance tonight does not warrant that the Bavarians extend his stay.