Bayern Munich – Manchester United: Goals Without The Glamor (4-3)

One could pardon passive followers of this clash for thinking it was a classic. While seven goals featured at the Allianz Arena, drama in the box made up for most of what happened out of it.

Tactical analysis and match report by Emmanuel Adeyemi-Abere.

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Bayern Munich are still the standard bearer in the Bundesliga, but their kingdom has been crumbling. The board has not taken the hint. Though Harry Kane is the star striker the squad missed, Thomas Tuchel did not receive all the troops he wanted to strengthen his selection. A preference for stability over style has led to the outcome one could have foreseen. The Bavarians have stayed at the top of the table without the explosiveness or dynamism of their pomp— and the chasing pack is monitoring.

The Dutch discipline of Erik ten Hag restored ruins in the red half of Manchester during his first year in the dugout. A top three finish in the league, places in two cup finals, and a first trophy in nearly six years indicated the club could be close to the promised land. However, within months, that conviction in a revival has rotted. Controversy off the pitch compounds the concerning state of play on the field. The manager requires far more than a change of formation to thwart what may be a devilish descent.

All manner of circumstances have worn away at ten Hag’s options. Raphaël Varane was still on the mend from an injury, so Victor Lindelöf continued to fill in for him at the heart of the defense. Since Mason Mount and Sofyan Amrabat were also out of the squad, Christian Eriksen stayed in the middle of the park. Another headache revolved around the position Antony and Jadon Sancho had left. The manager ditched the diamond he set out against Brighton, putting Facundo Pellestri on the right flank.

Tuchel seems to have settled on some favorites. He opted for ten of the eleven men that started in the draw at home to Leverkusen. Only Thomas Müller would drop to the bench, making way for Jamal Musiala. Konrad Laimer acted as the right back in place of Noussair Mazraoui. Kim Min-Jae was the partner to Dayot Upamecano, forcing Matthijs de Ligt to wait his turn. Ahead of Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka, Serge Gnabry and Leroy Sané flanked Musiala as the trident behind talismanic Kane.

Minimizing risk, maximizing efficiency

United returned to a more familiar system off the ball. They organized in a 4-1-4-1 formation to press the buildup of their hosts. Højlund initiated pressure from the front while man marking prevailed from the center. Fernandes followed Kimmich, Eriksen jumped to Goretzka, and Casemiro tended to shift to his right where Musiala lurked. Tuchel’s men struggled to get to grips with this arrangement.

7th minute: pressing sequence from United. The guests follow their usual defensive principles to force Bayern to the left. Marcus Rashford eventually receives in transition, but Laimer cuts out the danger.

He instructed Kane to go away from a central position to the right halfspace. If Martínez moved with him and Sané pushed diagonally into the space behind the defense, Laimer was free to receive the ball. On a few occasions, the Bavarians accelerated the speed of the attack through the fullback, or Sané sparked into life. However, they barely made an impression on the offense in the first half hour.

Indeed, the outlook was much of the same from this outfit. Tuchel demanded discipline and reserve from the double pivot to bring more stability. But to retain possession was a struggle. Laimer and Sané could not always connect from the right due to misreads of intent, while Alphonso Davies ran into dead ends on the left. Once any meaningful pressure began to build, the outcome was efficient.

Sané dribbled inside from the right, drilling a pass into the path of Kane. The striker pinned himself against Martínez, shielding the ball, and laid off a pass back to his teammate. Sané arrived on the edge of the penalty area, lining up a strike André Onana should have absorbed into his midriff. However, he committed a disastrous mistake: the effort slipped under his body and into the back of the net.

🚨🗣️ Erik ten Hag: “Of course, he [Onana] knows he has to stop the ball but the way Sane came through can’t be. And the second goal it’s almost similar over the other side, how easy players come through our box and to finish, it can’t be.” #MUFC pic.twitter.com/XmyBBKarAI

— mufcmpb (@mufcMPB) September 20, 2023

The Bavarians doubled down on their lead within four minutes of Sané’s shot. On this occasion, the balletic brilliance of Musiala stole the show. He received from Davies to his left, slalomed away from Casemiro, and then drove beyond Dalot into the box. He danced away once more from the fullback with the awareness to pull the ball back to Gnabry. He swept home, leaving Onana rooted to his spot.

Points of promise

The attention switched to how much threat United could create with the ball to work their way back into this match. Their repertoire has grown with the presence of Onana between the posts. Kane split to the right to block off Martínez, but the goalkeeper, as a free man at the back in the buildup phase, was extra support to progress the play. At first, the away team focused on longer balls to advance.

Over time, these phases of deep ball possession featured more passes on the floor. Eriksen would alternate the role of the deepest midfielder with Casemiro, and infield rotations from both fullbacks added to the solutions they could try. Most of the time, the target was to break through in the final third on the left. The dynamic duo of Reguilón and Rashford almost allowed the side to find Pellistri twice on the far post. Without ever settling in the final third, United poked holes at Bayern’s security.

8th minute: offensive sequence from Manchester United. Reguilón lures out Laimer to the flank and Sané does not close down goal side. Laimer must close down the dribbling lane down the line, so Rashford can separate to his inside and then sharply return a pass to the advancing left back.

Indeed, they threatened to overturn this contest’s flow in the 48th minute. Fernandes collected a loose ball, Casemiro slipped a pass to Rashford, and he picked out Højlund. The forward bobbled a strike past the palm of Sven Ulreich: 2-1. Regrettably, the guests conspired to be their worst enemies again.

Profligacy prolongs the adventure

Eriksen was the guilty party. Firstly, he conceded possession to Musiala, whose shot in transition earned the Bavarians a corner. A cross to the back post met Upamecano, whose header hit Eriksen’s arm at close quarters. VAR judged the incident to be worthy of punishment with a penalty. Kane stepped up from twelve yards and converted to restore the protection of the two goal advantage.

At this stage of the game, Bayern clicked into a higher gear. Musiala wandered across the midfield, slipping in Sané on the run to hit the post within minutes of Kane’s penalty. Now the offense was more fluid, Kane found himself in pockets to assist his teammates, and Musiala continued to trouble Casemiro. Chances presented themselves to finish the fight, but Bayern refrained from taking any.

Ten Hag turned to the bench for two new figures to fire up the offense. At the 80th minute mark, he introduced Anthony Martial for Højlund, and Alejandro Garnacho replaced Pellistri. But the goal that arrived was the handiwork of a midfielder. Rashford and Martial linked up while Casemiro pushed into the final third to connect with the forwards. Continuing the charge, he flicked the ball into his path, then hooked a second attempt on the floor to reduce the deficit to one goal for a second time.

The scoring spree persisted into injury time. While their visitors probed for an equalizer, the Bavarians could spring into space on the break. Laimer launched a pass out wide to Mathys Tel, whose cutback to Müller produced a strike that hit the post. Tel would not give in. He cushioned a chipped pass from Kimmich down from the air, then rifled into the roof of the net. With a finish of maturity beyond his years, he completed the task. Casemiro’s brace still left United empty handed.

This must be up there as one of the most boring and non-competitive 4-3s ever played. #BAYMUN

— Between The Posts (@BetweenThePosts) September 20, 2023

Takeaways

Against the other club of the two touted to get out from the group, Bayern Munich stand in good stead to advance thanks to this victory. It remains far from a vintage version of the Germans, and Tuchel’s constraints are contributing to displays that flatter to deceive. If he wishes to rely on individual talent to balance his search for stability, it might be some time before Kane makes his mark on this attack.

Manchester United have conceded three goals for three games in a row for the first time in nearly 50 years. Such a streak will urge some to point to the quality of their opponents and the injury crisis at Carrington, but that is not the only problem ten Hag faces. A rugged defense was a safeguard from weaknesses last year, and as a more fragile unit, more frustrating results may be around the corner.

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