FC Bayern after their first defeat
©IMAGO
Coach Vincent Kompany sees no reason to question his risky pressing style of play after his first defeat with FC Bayern. The 38-year-old Belgian will continue to attack the opponent courageously and offensively in the top game of the leaders at Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday (5:30 p.m. / DAZN) and thus consciously take defensive risks into account.
“Play style is not a word I use often. How we play is very pragmatic for me. It doesn’t have much to do with style, but as I see it, that we can be successful with the players, with the squad we have,” explained Kompany after the 0-1 defeat in the Champions League at Aston Villa. “Of course, if you lose, you just have to get up and win the next game again. There is nothing else. But it’s not like I forget what we achieved in our games.”
Bayern won six of the eight games this season, some of them clearly. A week ago, after a dominant performance, there was a 1-1 draw in the top game against German champions Bayer Leverkusen. In Frankfurt it is now “the goal to win” again. When asked whether he had any respect for a crisis in results, Kompany answered clearly: “No!”
Sports director Max Eberl supported Kompany’s course in the press conference on Saturday. “Both games, Leverkusen and Aston Villa, you will win if you play them more often. The results were not the reward for what had been achieved. “But we’re building on that,” said Eberl. However, the team “always has to be at the limit”. 96 or 97 percent were not enough for victories against opponents like Aston Villa. “The goal in Frankfurt is to remain at the top of the table,” explained the manager.
FC Bayern: Eberl confident about Musiala extension
Missing will be Jamal Musiala, who will also be out for the national team’s upcoming Nations League games against Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Netherlands due to hip problems. “We all know how important Jamal is for Bayern Munich and for Germany,” said Kompany. Nevertheless, it is “the right decision” to let him take a break for now: “It is important that he stays healthy and fit.”
Kompany said it was a “great shame” that Musiala couldn’t be there in Frankfurt: “But we have one hundred percent confidence in our squad.” Alternatives for the tenth position include returnee Leroy Sané (28) or veteran Thomas Müller (35). “I have said many times how important Thomas is,” Kompany noted.
Meanwhile, sports director Eberl expressed “great confidence” that the record champions could retain the 21-year-old Musiala beyond 2026. “Something is currently emerging here,” emphasized Eberl. Musiala sees that too. “He should become a face of Bayern Munich. I see no reason why he should leave the club.” There have already been initial discussions.