Podcast #03: MiaSanSchwarz-Gelb
November 13, 2020 It was the talk of the town, dare I say the talk of the whole world. Yes, after much anticipation, a hard-fought battle and some losses, Bayern once more overcame their eternal rival Borussia Dortmund!
Huh? What’s that? An election? Joe Biden? Beating some Donald Trump? Nah, never heard of those guys! The only thing of note having happened on Saturday was a game of football. Nothing more!
In a game of ups and downs Bayern won the game but lost their most important midfield-player. Marc, Maurice and Daniel discuss how the win was achieved, how Flick might cope without Kimmich and what Dortmund is still missing right now.
Honestly, we were talking so much about BVB this time, you might think you’ll be listening to a Dortmund-podcast.
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Thanks for the interesting discussion. The Dortmund game was really good from tactical point of view so it’s nice to hear you spent time for it. I personally think Bayern defense in this match was fine, not as bad as the media made them out to be. It’s not like they are facing Haaland every weekend, and the young foward’s speed, sheer physicality and movement really stood out. I also think had Davies and Sule were on the field, Haaland would not have that much fun, not to mention Sarr who was a bit overwhelmed by the occasion. You all praised Lucas Hernandez, he was really good, and his Simeone defending style brings something different to the table. However, one must also pointed out that it was Hernandez whose positioning was a tad too low, making Haaland on site for his goal. He still needs to improve in that regards.
The Coman – Gnarbry point was also interesting. I think part of the reason they played more centrally was Kimmich – Davies – Pavard, or the absence of them. We lacked the usual route and personnel to build the game up especially after Kimmich’s injury hence Coman and Gnrarbry, to some extents, took the playmaking burden, dropping a bit deeper to receive in half spaces and combining with the forwards and midfield. It also made a lot of sense given the aggressive Dortmund play, and every time they were able to turn, they could create something (e.g. the offside goal).
My opinion for central midfield is also Goretzka – Tolisso, and I expect Flick to make some tweaks so that they could handle the Kimmich hole better. Maybe Roca could be a suprise. But maybe not Alaba.
The Hummels joke at the end was funny. I would take Bellingham without hesitation. He’s a great young talent, can be nurtured into Thiago’s replacement. Especially he could help a great deal given current situation. Granted, I don’t know much about Tiago Dantas. Other than that, I personally think not a single Dortmund player can get into Bayern XI right now.
Hi Hien. Thank you for your feedback as always and especially in this case given the newness of the podcast. As I said in the podcast, I agree with you regarding the importance of Davies and Sule to the backline when facing Haaland and coupled with Pavard’s injury, it’s hard to really judge any of them very harshly. Regarding Hernandez there are a few things that contribute to our praise of him this season. First of course is that he has played well. Second is that last season he left a lot of uncertainty about how he would actually perform once he was healthy. Third no one else in the defense (Neuer excluded) has done well at all this season. I think we’ve all agreed over the three episodes that Boateng and Sule have been ok but not up to the level that we expect of them. Alaba and Pavard have been noticeably worse than last season. However Hernandez has been noticeably better and has exceeded many expectations. This is not to say we think he has been flawless, but rather that he has simply been the best of a not so great group.
Your point regarding the inverted nature of Coman and Gnabry probably also has some truth in it. It was a weird match after the loss of Kimmich that forced players to do things that we’re not used to seeing them do. The midfield will be the place to watch for Bayern until Kimmich gets back. I very much hope that Roca can be integrated more quickly. A few good performances could go a long way to making the midfield feel more secure. I’m not sure about Alaba there either but it’s hard to rule anything out at the moment. Thanks for agreeing with me on Bellingham! He really impressed me and especially after seeing Kimmich get injured, his performance made the absence of an obvious replacement even more poignant for me.
Thank you Marc for coming back. In the mean time Hernandez gave a great interview with France Football on his attitude, his willing to compete and contribute to Bayern. The interview made me like him even more, especially his mentality and attitude, a great player to have in your team.
For the midfield, at least this weekend, seems Tolisso, the easy choice, is out, it would be interesting to see what Flick would do, a risky but logical move with Roca, a slightly less logical but also promising one with Alaba (but we might not have enough bodies in the defence to do so) or a safe and boring choice with Martinez.