Bundesliga
Farewell dominance: FC Bayern in search of themselves
Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel (l) sees an all-round battle for the championship in the Bundesliga season. photo
© Hendrik Schmidt/dpa
Even the 100 million euro star Harry Kane changes little. Bayern have lost their dominance in the Bundesliga. The coach also expects an all-round battle for the title.
“That’s why the conclusion is rather positive,” said the Munich coach after the 2-2 draw at RB Leipzig. That doesn’t exactly sound like “Mia san mia” and a look at the table makes it clear after six match days: last season was not an interim low, subscription champions Bayern are currently a long way from absolute dominance.
This kind of thing really annoys an ambitious man like Joshua Kimmich, which is why the national soccer player chose much more critical words than Tuchel. “We invite them and give them food to get into the game,” said the 28-year-old. These invitations are a problem that has been bothering her for a long time. “We’re still having problems staying consistent over 90 minutes against the top teams,” said Kimmich. FCB couldn’t get past a 2-2 draw against league leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
Distance from everyday league life
The upcoming trip to Copenhagen in the Champions League should be very welcome for Bayern in order to get some distance from the modest everyday life of the league. Of course, third place, two points behind Leverkusen after six matchdays, isn’t a terrible result, but it’s just not Bayern-like. Especially since they had hoped for significantly more with the statement transfer from Harry Kane for 100 million euros.
The superstar scores regularly – including in Leipzig – but Bayern are not spreading any fear at the moment. “The difference from last season is that the games don’t completely slip away from us,” said Tuchel. In Leipzig it was 0-2 after just 26 minutes. A repeat of the Supercup disgrace, when Bayern lost 3-0 in their own stadium, was at least avoided.
Tuchel already suspects that the twelfth championship title in a row will be even more difficult than number eleven. The coach expects an all-round battle for the title and sees Borussia Dortmund, Leverkusen and Leipzig at the top until the end. “These teams play very well, are dangerous and successful,” said the 50-year-old. “We want to be at the front at the end, to be at the front all the time.”
The tension can only be good for the league. “I think every football fan in Germany is happy when things get close in the Bundesliga for a long time,” said Leverkusen’s sports director Simon Rolfes in ZDF’s “Sportstudio”. This was already shown last season, when BVB and Bayern fought a thrilling duel. It wasn’t until the last matchday that the record champions overtook them and only won the cup on the basis of a better goal difference.
Too slow and incorrect in the game structure
The construction sites that Tuchel, who was installed at the end of March, has to manage have only become smaller to a limited extent. The game structure in Leipzig was too slow and incorrect – once again. And the goals conceded came after a throw-in and a corner, which in itself doesn’t sound difficult to defend. “We have enough things to improve,” warned Tuchel.
The impending return of 35-year-old Jérôme Boateng best illustrates the situation at FC Bayern. The ex-national player trained on Säbener Straße on Sunday morning and came to the training pitch directly behind Tuchel. The central defender, who is without a club, has not played a game since June and was more of a bench warmer than a regular player at his former club Lyon. It wasn’t long ago that Bayern wouldn’t even have thought about such a commitment.