When the Bundesliga schedule was first confirmed and it became clear Schalke 04 would host Bayern Munich on jut the second Bundesliga matchday, the expectation was that Die Königsblauen would be swept aside rather convincingly. After all, the team's last meeting, three years ago, ended 6-0 to Bayern. That was under Thomas Tuchel's inconsistent Bayern. What could Kompany & Co do?
Stutter to a 0-0 draw, that is what. A dour Bayern team struggled to get out of second gear and really punish a defensively solid Schalke, who celebrate their first point since their return to the Bundesliga. Here are some observations on the match:
It is easy to forget after the match, but the first 15 minutes completely belonged to Bayern. The Bavarians' counterpress utterly suffocated the hosts, who simply could not exit their own half in those minutes. The team pinged the ball around, kept it well and utterly annihilated any counter attacks.
But, in what would become an unfortunate running theme throughout the match, the passing was far too slow and the players seemed unsure of their positions. One of Bayern's most important strengths is their ability to move the ball quickly from side to side. Players know their positions, know how to move the ball on and ping it back and forth. This forces the opposition defense to move side to side, which opens up **** e in the middle and opportunities to score.
This was missing today. It was clear that the chemistry among forwards Nathaniel Brown, Ismael Saibari and Lennart Karl was missing, but regulars such as Konrad Laimer, Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upamecano also struggled to really get into the flow of things. It was possible to overcome these issues (Nathaniel Brown, after all, would still have given Bayern the lead if it had not been for a phenomenal save by Loris Karius in the Schalke goal) and perhaps the players would have grown into the match more.
#players #first
Stutter to a 0-0 draw, that is what. A dour Bayern team struggled to get out of second gear and really punish a defensively solid Schalke, who celebrate their first point since their return to the Bundesliga. Here are some observations on the match:
It is easy to forget after the match, but the first 15 minutes completely belonged to Bayern. The Bavarians' counterpress utterly suffocated the hosts, who simply could not exit their own half in those minutes. The team pinged the ball around, kept it well and utterly annihilated any counter attacks.
But, in what would become an unfortunate running theme throughout the match, the passing was far too slow and the players seemed unsure of their positions. One of Bayern's most important strengths is their ability to move the ball quickly from side to side. Players know their positions, know how to move the ball on and ping it back and forth. This forces the opposition defense to move side to side, which opens up **** e in the middle and opportunities to score.
This was missing today. It was clear that the chemistry among forwards Nathaniel Brown, Ismael Saibari and Lennart Karl was missing, but regulars such as Konrad Laimer, Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upamecano also struggled to really get into the flow of things. It was possible to overcome these issues (Nathaniel Brown, after all, would still have given Bayern the lead if it had not been for a phenomenal save by Loris Karius in the Schalke goal) and perhaps the players would have grown into the match more.
#players #first
2 months ago
