Die Folgen: Bayern’s 3-1 victory over Chelsea (Bavarian Football Works)
Bayern Munich hosted Chelsea in what looked to be one of the most highly-anticipated match-ups on the docket for the day.
After an initial feeling-out process, Bayern Munich took control of the match. The Bavarians faced a stiff test and did not waver in taking down Chelsea 3-1. It was a strong effort from Bayern Munich, but not one that help football earn the moniker of “The Beautiful Game.”
Regardless, Bayern Munich got a key UCL League Phase win, so let’s dive into it. Here are some quick hitters on the match:
- As always, let’s begin with a look at the starting XI:
- There was only one slightly surprising selection — Aleksandar Pavlović over Leon Goretzka in the central midfield next to Joshua Kimmich. In this case, Kompany opted to ride the hot hand of Pavlović over Goretzka’s more physical style.
- The early part of the match was a bit choppy for both teams as they sought to achieve any type of comfort level. Chelsea seemed a bit better and more dangerous in that early going.
- Serge Gnabry had a nice rip, which went wide in the 11th minute, while Marc Cucurella sent a header wide just two minutes later. Space was not easy to find, but the game was starting to open up a bit.
- The German fans whistling at Cucurella, whose handball played a role in downing Germany at the EURO 2024, was appropriate.
- There was not a buzz missing from the crowd, which seemed great, but there was a lack of energy in the match from both sides at times. It was almost as if no one wanted to make a mistake.
- Bayern Munich’s best early moment came on a pass from Luis Díaz to Harry Kane, who dummied it, straight through to Gnabry who fired his attempt into the legs of a defender.
- In the 20th minute, Bayern Munich would finally open up the scoring when Michael Olise sent in a cross from the right side, which Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah deposited into the net for an own goal.
- In the 25th minute Moises Caicedo hauled down Kane in the box for a PK. It was an obvious penalty and Kane took care of business to make it 2-0 in the 27th minute.
- Just like that, Bayern Munich was up 2-0 and in firm control of the contest. Well, at least that’s what it seemed like.
- After Olise was dispossessed, Cole Palmer started a quick counter-attack, which was ominous from the outset as Jonathan Tah got tripped up on the far side (and earned a yellow card for taking down João Pedro, which left Josip Stanišić to defend three players as Dayot Upamecano was caught way out of position and Joshua Kimmich and Konrad Laimer attempted to track back to no avail. Yes, Bayern Munich is still susceptible to those quick counters and Palmer got an idea of exactly what he needed to do against a shaky Bayern Munich backline.
- Tah and Upamecano together is still taking some time to gel.
- The Allianz Arena grass was slick. Multiple players went down over the course of the match.
- To start the second half, Kompany brought on Kim Min-jae on Tah. That move was likely driven by Tah’s yellow card, but the head coach might not have had to be convinced to make the change either.
- Josip Stanišić had to leave the match in the 51st minute and was replaced by Sacha Boey. Boey played right-back, which pushed Laimer to left-back.
- Bayern Munich was taking over the game and putting consistent pressure on Chelsea, which paid off in the 63rd minute when Kane took advantage of some nice work from Gnabry and Díaz to get his second goal of the contest. Chelsea was trying to build out of the back, but everything was in slow-mo. Malo Gusto essentially assisted Kane on the goal.
- Immediately after the goal, Goretzka checked in for Pavlović, who was not great (not terrible or anything, but definitely not great). It was a step back from his masterpiece over the week and it coincided with a step up in competition. Pavlović just did not look comfortable.
- Gnabry was a ball of energy with a crazy workrate. Where has this version of Gnabry been for the past four years?
- In truth, this was not a game where anyone — aside of Kane — really stood out. Just about everyone else on the pitch battled through difficulties at one point or another. It was just one of those games, where the whole had to be greater than the sum of its parts.
- It is rare that we criticize him, but Olise had a maddening game. Crafty at times, silly at others, it always seemed that any time that Olise did something good, he immediately followed it with something regrettable. It just was not a very fluid game for the burgeoning star. You have to wonder if the heavy workload over the past year is not catching up with uim a bit.
- On the bright side, Olise did have several run-ins with Cucurealla, so the crowd was most likely giving him the benefit of the doubt.
- Chelsea seemed to take its foot off the gas as the second half went on…almost resigned to its fate.
- This really might have been Sacha Boey’s best game for Bayern Munich.
- Min-jae was a tad lucky that Palmer’s knee was offside because the attacking seemingly made a great run toward goal that the center-back did not react quick enough to. Thankfully, Palmer’s kneecap was a smidge offside. Palmer clearly had a feeling that would be the case as he did not even really celebrate.
- Overall, it was not an aesthetically pleasing game, but it was a hard-fought victory nonetheless. Bayern Munich can come out of the match happy to have gotten the win and pleased that it got better over the course of the match — despite not playing anywhere near its best game. This is one to build from.
If you missed our Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, or Postgame Podcast, give them a look or a listen:
Bayern to battle a slew of teams for Guéhi (Sport Bild’s Christian Falk)
Bayern Munich could have to spar with Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan, and Juventus for Crystal Palace center-back Marc Guéhi:
Bayern Munich are one of the clubs reportedly showing keen interest in signing Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guéhi next summer. During the summer transfer window, Guéhi was only a step away from moving to Liverpool after a £35m deal was agreed on the deadline day.
According to a report from The Mirror, Liverpool could face competition from Manchester City and Chelsea for Guéhi’s signature, potentially developing into a significant transfer tug-of-war.
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan, and Juventus are among the other European clubs that are also keeping a close eye on the 25-year-old defender.
Tah has role models inside and outside of football (Säbener 51 via @iMiaSanMia)
Bayern Munich center-back Jonathan Tah recently took some time to talk about who some of his role models were over his life.
“For me, Nelson Mandela is still someone truly great, someone who made a huge impact and from whom I drew a lot of inspiration. When I look at sports, I think of LeBron James, for example. Or Ronaldinho – he was one of my idols when I played football on the streets as a kid. And even though that wasn’t my position, he embodied this absolute love of football for me. He simply enjoyed the game. Maybe he didn’t do some things in his career the way I would, but he represented that special passion for me. And I took that with me from him,” Tah said.
The Bundesliga Rundown with Marcus Iredahl: Matchday 3 (Bavarian Football Works)
No more international break — the Bundesliga is finally back.
Matchday 3 offers the first real hints of who might be title contenders — and who could be stuck in the relegation fight.
In this episode of The Bundesliga Rundown:
- Marcus’ post-international-break blues (yes, he watched Sweden live)
- Wolfsburg and the history of this unique German company town
- VfL Wolfsburg’s greatest moment — and the warriors behind it
- FC Köln and the… cringy?… Lukas Kwasniok
- Bayern Munich’s succession drama after Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Uli Hoeneß
- Vincent Kompany’s surprising stint as Bayern manager
… and plenty more!
Díaz recalls the days of Robbery (Säbener 51 via @iMiaSanMia)
Luis Díaz recalled his earliest memory of watching Bayern Munich.
“I’ve always watched a lot of football. When I’m at home, I pretty much watch everything. My first memories of FC Bayern were (Arjen) Robben and (Franck) Ribéry. And then there was a player named ‘Schweinsteiger,’ or something like that, right? I remember the 2013 Champions League final, which Bayern won against Dortmund, very well. That left a lasting impression on me,” said Díaz.
Kane touts Yamal (Marca via @iMiaSanMia)
Bayern Munich striker Harry is a pretty big fan of FC Barcelona star Lamine Yamal.
“He’s a fantastic player. Obviously, the fact that he’s doing what he’s doing at such a young age is incredible. He looks like he has a great future ahead of him. Let’s see if we’ll face Barcelona in the Champions League this year. I’m happy for him; he’s a fantastic player,” said Kane.
Bavarian Podcast Works — Flagship Show: Season 8, Episode 10 (Bavarian Football Works)
Bayern Munich is entering a rugged part of its schedule and the buzz surrounding the team should spike in the coming days. Let’s talk about where everything stands after a great weekend in the Bundesliga and ahead of a key match against Chelsea in the Champions League:
- It was a good weekend for Bayern Munich as the Bavarians dominated Hamburger SV. What good can we take out of that ahead of a very important showdown against Chelsea in the Champions League.
- Thomas Müller dropped a hat trick on the Philadelphia Union…on his birthday. Let’s discuss…
- Should fans be concerned about all of the noise surrounding Michael Olise? With Liverpool and Manchester City (plus maybe Paris Saint-Germain and FC Barcelona, too) all reportedly interested, things look a little dicey.
