Four takeaways as Bayern Munich are held to a scoreless draw by Hertha Berlin

After their midweek thrashing of Besiktas in the Champions League, Bayern Munich were held to a hard-fought, scoreless draw by visitors Hertha Berlin on Saturday.

Credit where credit is due

To come to the Allianz Arena and keep a clean sheet against Bayern Munich is an immensely difficult task for any team. But that’s exactly what Hertha Berlin did. Their grit and determination may not have made for the prettiest of performances, but it was effective.

The visitors knew what they had to do and did it well. Niklas Stark and the Berlin backline did well to shield Rune Jarstein’s goal, and the Norwegian ‘keeper made all the big saves when it mattered most.

No, Bayern weren’t at their best (perhaps a little winded from a busy schedule), but take nothing away from their opponents, who deserve credit for a determined display.

Robbery fail to impress

After being dropped from the starting XI midweek and with their future at the club still uncertain, Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben had a point to prove heading into this match. They both want to stay at Bayern beyond this season, but must work hard to earn the right to do that.

Unfortunately for them, they didn’t really take advantage of such a good opportunity. This was especially true for Franck Ribery, who offered very little in attack and fired Bayern’s best chance at a goal well into the stands.

Arjen Robben fared a little better and was at least a creative force on the right flank. However, the Dutchman still looks as if he hasn’t completely recovered from his latest spell on the sidelines.

Simply based on their performances against Hertha Berlin, it’s hard to justify extending either Ribery or Robben’s contract, unless they’re strictly limited to a super-sub role. But it appears neither is willing to accept such a role.

And if they remain opposed to substitute roles, maybe it’s time for the club to move on.

Bayern stale in attack…

It wasn’t just Robbery who failed to impress in attack, it was the whole Bayern offensive. For the first time in 69 home matches, even, the Bavarians did not score in front of their home fans at the Allianz Arena.

Thomas Muller looked a shadow of his raumdeuter self, the one who demolished Besiktas on Tuesday. The Bayern poster boy struggled to make anything good happen and often gave the ball away far too easily.

Robert Lewandowski, meanwhile, should receive criticism for his wastefulness in front of goal. The Pole took an insane total 11 shots, but only placed 3 of them on goal. Sure, much of that is due to Hertha Berlin’s credible defensive work, but Lewandowski is supposed to be the best striker on the planet. Surely he can do better than that.

Any spark of hope provided by Kingsley Coman’s introduction was soon vanquished by an unfortunate injury that really debilitated him. This also caused Sandro Wagner to move out wide to the left flank, thus squashing his ability to make a real impact as well.

All around, it was just a poor performance from the Bavarian offensive.

…but solid in defense

On the defensive end, however, things were much different. As usual, Mats Hummels was nothing short of class in central defense. It was his partner, though, who really impressed.

Niklas Sule has quietly been one of Bayern’s most consistent players this season, but he’s also improving with every single match. The German giant did his job superbly against Hertha Berlin, showing that he’s much more than a decent back-up for die Roten.

David Alaba, meanwhile, impressed once again at left-back, as he has so often done since Jupp Heynckes’ return to Bayern Munich. He was not only good defensively but a major threat on the attack as well. In a game where Franck Ribery failed to have much of a positive impact, Alaba picked up the Frenchman’s slack and did all the work on the left side of the pitch.

Next: Bayern Munich held to scoreless draw against Hertha Berlin -- Player grades

He nearly grabbed a goal with a well-placed free-kick early in the second half, and should have had another opportunity late in the match (he was denied by Arjen Robben’s appeal to seniority). After watching the Austrian decline so significantly under Carlo Ancelotti, it’s great to see him back performing at (or at least near) his very best.