After last week’s disaster against Mainz, a lot of people assumed that the Bundesliga was going to be out of reach for Bayern Munich this year. Of course BVB came roaring back and drew against relegation candidate VFL Bochum, so somehow the Bavarians have a chance to go back on top of the table with a win this week. It’s just that wins have been extremely hard to find lately.
Team news
Dayot Upamecano is out with a hamstring injury. He joins Alphonso Davies (also a hamstring) on the sidelines in that regard. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting remains injured, Benjamin Pavard returns to the squad after serving his yellow card suspension last week.
As far as the lineup is concerned, Sadio Mane may get a second consecutive start at striker, having scored in that role last week. Jamal Musiala may replace Thomas Muller at the attacking midfield position, while Kingsley Coman and Leroy Sane start on the wings.
Leon Goretzka is reportedly suffering from some knee problems, so this may be the first time we get to see a Gravenberch-Kimmich pivot in midfield. This could finally be a chance for us to see what the young Dutchman can do against Bundesliga level opposition, and whether he’s justified for complaining about his playing time.
The defense is easy to guess, on account of several injuries. Joao Cancelo will take Davies’ place at left-back, while Benjamin Pavard slots in at center-back next to Matthijs de Ligt. Noussair Mazraoui, apparently fit now, will likely play at right-back, completing the outfield lineup. Yann Sommer, as usual, will start in goal.
Here’s what the starting XI could look like:
Update
Here’s what Bild thinks the lineup will be like.
Interested in a more in-depth preview of the game? Then check out our preview podcast! It leaves out a few injuries since it was recorded earlier in the week, but it’s still quite relevant. Listen to it below or on Spotify.
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