Et were fascinating images that presented themselves to people delighted by a huge football game during the 88th minute in the BayArena in Leverkusen. Granit Xhaka and Alejandro Grimaldo lay completely exhausted on the pitch, as if they were at the end of a 120-minute European Cup battle. Munich's Min-Jae Kim could hardly stand on his feet due to exhaustion; The players had invested everything in this groundbreaking duel, which Bayer Leverkusen won in impressive fashion 3-0 (1-0).
The league leaders didn't even allow Munich to have a chance. “From minute one to 90 minutes we were on the accelerator,” said Leverkusen midfielder Robert Andrich. “We did really good things, it was a very, very deserved win.”
After the final whistle, Munich's Thomas Müller was so horrified by this Rhenish demonstration of power that he could hardly keep his anger under control. “We have a toughness in our game, we lack balls and this freedom,” said the attacker, who came on as a substitute after an hour, at Sky. “You can feel the pressure, but it has to give you energy. Nobody here has the freedom to just start gambling.”
Coach's game
Not only have Bayern lost ground in the title fight, they have also missed the chance to free themselves from the very burden that seems to be paralyzing Munich. That was exactly the hope.
“It feels like this is an evening where you can take the next step as a club,” Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel said before the game. In the end, it was the Rhinelanders who took this next step. Because they are now a team that has particularly well-suited and flexible plans ready for the very special games. “When we need that, we are able to be dominant sometimes and wait sometimes,” Alonso said.
At some point, Thomas Tuchel once formulated the thesis that “football is a game of players,” and it is not impossible that Xabi Alonso would also fundamentally agree with this statement. However, this duel was clearly a game of the coaches, because both had come up with a few special things that were untried and that didn't exist before.
Frustrated: Striker Harry Kane achieved little.
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Image: dpa
Tuchel had his team play with a three-man chain and nominated winter newcomer Sacha Boey for the starting eleven for the first time. And Alonso placed Josip Stanisic on the right wing, where Jeremie Frimpong usually plays, dispensed with a classic number nine and placed Florian Wirtz in the forward position. The clear winner of this game of lawn chess: Alonso.
It was Stanisic, on loan from FC Bayern, who made it 1-0 (18th), also because Boey had previously been disoriented for a moment. Almost the entire Munich team took a quick breather at the wrong moment. Up to this moment, the two teams had been feeling each other out, but now the full strategic versatility of Leverkusen was revealed, and from then on they dominated FC Bayern in every way.
Change of plans after an hour
The long-time champions didn't have a single chance to score until the final whistle, in complete contrast to Bayer 04. “We kept finding space for Bayern. I think that with the ball we also showed courage and self-confidence and a good structure,” said sports director Simon Rolfes.
Although Tuchel called Leverkusen's first two goals “cheap”, they were still a fitting expression of the balance of power on the pitch. Alejandro Grimaldo made it 2-0 (50'), before substitute Frimpong scored his third deep into stoppage time. Bayer Leverkusen was simply the better team on all levels: smarter, more strategically mature, more alert, and more committed in most phases.
After about an hour, Tuchel thoughtfully ruffled his beard and changed the plan, away from coaching to playing as a player. The veterans Joshua Kimmich and Thomas Müller came on after an hour for Pavlovic and Upamecano, which ended the three-man chain experiment. But little changed. Bayern now had a little more possession of the ball, but they didn't create a goal threat, also because Bayer Leverkusen defended brilliantly.
For example, like a swarm of hungry piranhas, they pounced on Leroy Sané whenever he started to dribble. The joy in defensive work, which is underdeveloped in so many top teams, was noticeable right down to the last rows under the roof of the electrified stadium.
The key to this victory, beyond the good offensive moments, was a masterpiece of defensive art by Bayer 04. “All the players played at a great level with high concentration and the willingness to suffer,” said Alonso. Harry Kane or Jamal Musiala didn't even come close to creating dangerous scoring opportunities.
In the face of this all-round inferiority, the Bayern fans only knew how to help themselves with a classic fan chant: “You will never be German champions!” they bellowed. However, there are many indications that this idea will soon become obsolete. Just like Thomas Tuchel's ideas about a suitable strategy for this football game.
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