Football is no longer just a sporting, economic and social yardstick, but also a cultural, pandemic and, for some, maybe even meteorological. Not to forget its political component. The most important parameters from the opening game of the 59th Bundesliga season are therefore: temperature: 21 degrees; Humidity: 62 percent; local incidence: 84.7; Spectators: 22,925; Mood: goose bumps; Goals: two; Game: classy; Relevance as the beginning of a season of longed-for normality: enormous; political significance 45 days before the federal election: minimal.
For FC Bayern Munich and its millions of sympathizers, this was simply the start of a season that should bring the tenth championship title in a row. The fact that the Bavarian football dominators in the first competitive game under the new coach Julian Nagelsmann did not get more than 1: 1 (1: 1) at Borussia Mönchengladbach should not change their ambitions. You have to see it this way: The first point towards the title is won, and Robert Lewandowski scored another goal right away.
“You’re never satisfied if you don’t win. In the end you have to live with the point,” said Nagelsmann after the game. “We saw a spectacular opening game. The beginning and the end belonged to us, in between Bayern were strong and Yann Sommer saved us,” said Gladbach’s new coach Adi Hütter.
Bayern have eight French in their squad since Dayot Upamecano moved from Leipzig and Michael Cuisance returned from Marseille. However: Lucas Hernandez and Benjamin Pavard were injured, Corentin Tolisso was not part of the squad and Kingsley Coman, Bouna Sarr, Tanguy Nianzou and Cuisance were on the bench. Only Upamecano remained as a central defender to be able to communicate with the Gladbach center forward Alassane Plea in the native language. However, there was not much time to chat when exactly this Plea scored the 1-0 for Gladbach in the 10th minute.
Interesting in Nagelsmann’s first Bayern back four: Josip Stanisic from the second team played on the right in his second Bundesliga game, and alongside Upamecano as central defender Niklas Süle in his 195th Bundesliga game. Both looked helpless when the advancing left-back Alphonso Davies lost the ball in the 10th minute. Gladbach’s Patrick Herrmann sent the ball past Süle to Lars Stindl, who passed Upamecano to Plea, and he shot in without Stanisic being seen far and wide. The audience roared.
The 22,925 spectators spread over 54,000 seats in Borussia-Park. When was the last time there were so many spectators in a German football stadium? Answer: On March 9, 2020. On that Monday, the second division game between VfB Stuttgart and SC Paderborn with 54,302 spectators was the last game in a full stadium before the outbreak of the Corona crisis. Two days later, Gladbach had to play its catch-up game against 1. FC Köln in the empty Borussia Park.
Gladbach forces Bayern goalkeeper Neuer to parade
Despite the acoustic support, Borussia initially gave up the game. Bayern now let the ball and opponents run without allowing themselves fatal ball losses until the break. Lewandowski failed twice and Stanisic once because of the fabulous Swiss goalkeeper named Yann Sommer, who had wished to be played in a film adaptation of Robert De Niro after winning the last 16 at the European Championship against France. But in the 42nd minute, Sommer was powerless when Lewandowski ran away from Gladbach defender Nico Elvedi and volleyed a Joshua-Kimmich corner to make it 1-1.
After their early lead, the Gladbachers let the aggressive pressing that their new trainer Adi Hütter demanded of them, dragged on a bit. In the second half they took it up again, played more consistently into the penalty area and forced Neuer to save.
On the other side of the pitch, Sommer continued to work on De Niro’s possible interest by crushing Davies and Lewandowski’s best chances. The latter shook his head in confusion because Gladbach’s goalkeeper showed the reflexes of a cinematic superhero. Neuer, if necessary maybe a case for Brad Pitt, responded with splendid parades against Stindl and Hannes Wolf. The game was completely open in the closing stages.
The Munich team was lucky, however, when, shortly before the end, only one and then two possible fouls by Upamecano against Marcus Thuram by referee Marco Fritz and the video assistant were not rated as worthy of penalties. Especially in the first action, the Bayern defender kicked the striker in the heels – Hütter and the fans showed the referee their dissatisfaction in the high decibel range, the new coach also received a yellow card because he articulated his displeasure too clearly. Albeit rightly. Bayern player Leon Goretzka said honestly after the game: “We can’t complain about a whistle.”