Bayern Munich looked on course for another annoying scoreless draw after an hour plus full of chance creation but nothing to show for it. Thankfully that wasn’t the case in the end.
The Bavarians eked out a 2-0 home win over basement boys Hertha Berlin in a game that puts them first once again in the league standings. Serge Gnabry’s diving header on 69 minutes (nice) and Kingsley Coman’s nicely taken goal on 75’, both off Joshua Kimmich’s chip assists, proved the difference on the day.
What are lineups?
Thomas Tuchel has been fielding weird starting XIs lately. Mathys Tel is still aching to get a start without getting one, and this time Leroy Sané also dropped to the bench despite his recent strong showings in attack.
Instead Tuchel selects Sadio Mané and Serge Gnabry, who have each been ineffective for stretches of this season. Gnabry rewarded Tuchel with a goal, but Mané did little apart from elbowing Hertha keeper Oliver Christensen.
At least Noussair Mazraoui is starting to play more games (sorry Josip Stanišić).
The whistles that aren’t from the referee
The home team was on the receiving end of loud jeers and whistles when the first half ended, and no one can argue that it wasn’t undeserved. Although Bayern started to move more as the half progressed, they were continuously denied the opening goal. The struggles to create chances against relegation fodder speaks volumes about the state of the team.
As the case was with Sané earlier this season, it looks like the booing lit a fire inside them. In the second part of the second half, Bayern finally roared back to life.
Meisterschale —> Meisterschadenfreude
It’s difficult to come to terms with how Bayern and Borussia Dortmund have managed to step on banana peels week-in week-out. The last time a title challenge between these two teams was in 2018/19, when both were legit contenders after Bayern’s Rückrunde turnaround and it was a matter of who got there first.
Now, it looks like the title is being tossed between the pair like a hot potato. So far neither team has been able to capitalize on the other’s misfortune. Hopefully the win today is a step in the right direction.
Bonus: The officiating is still a joke
Need I say more?
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