It was not a match of the year contender, I should say that now. For the first time in 69 games, Bayern Munich failed to score at the Allianz Arena. Although they did not lose, this was a massive let down for the fans who were expecting more after the 5-0 victory against Besiktas.
After holding the ball for almost the entirety of the first two minutes, the match very quickly looked as if it was to be another completely controlled by Bayern Munich, with goals flying in from all possible angles. 11th-placed Hertha Berlin, however, managed to defend their hearts out and settle for a scoreless draw.
Standing out from the crowd
In a match so unremarkable, the stand out moments came in the form of reasonable-to-good performances from certain players. While a 0-0 draw at home is usually seen as a negative, that Bayern conceded no goals is in part due to the abilities of both David Alaba and Niklas Süle.
Alaba’s career progression had largely plateaued for several seasons but, much like many of his teammates, has experienced something of a renaissance under Jupp Heynckes. A near 95% accuracy in his passing and great link-up with Franck Ribéry reminiscent of their ’12-13 season, this match was a call back to his best.
Elsewhere in defense, Süle had yet another quietly brilliant game. 92% pass accuracy, and 100% tackling success, his abilities are improving every match. Bayern are lucky to have a player with his ceiling and patience as part of their squad.
Bayern’s golden duo of Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben have been the subject of much criticism recently. A sharp decline in quality and physical ability has seen both of them fall out of favor with many fans, despite them still wanting to be difference makers.
For 70 minutes, Ribery worked with Alaba, Robert Lewandowski and Robben to disrupt the Hertha defense. A very long way away from what he used to be, Ribery’s brain still works but his legs can’t keep up anymore.
Today, though, he was reliable, which is what many Bayern fans have claimed he is not. Several great touches and passes may have been overshadowed by his missing Bayern’s best chance of the game in the first half. As Lewandowski sent Arjen Robben through on goal, Robben chose to pass out wide to Ribery whose first-time shot sailed over the bar.
It is a shame that this will be what many Bayern fans remember of Ribery’s performance today, as everything outside of that moment was solid. Not excellent, but reliable.
On the opposite flank, Arjen Robben was one of Bayern’s most promising outlets. He found himself in “Robben territory” several times. However, Berlin’s resilience meant that this outlet was significantly limited. His strong free-kick towards the end of the game was only stopped by a great save from Rune Jarstein.
Credit to the opponent
Too often a game in which Bayern fail to score will result in the consensus: “Bayern were terrible.” Although not strictly inaccurate, this score was just as much a result of Hertha Berlin defending really well as it was Bayern being poor.
Several chances that would have been definite goals in other matches were blocked by any number of Berlin’s many defensive players. Niklas Stark and the 20-year-old Jordan Torunarigha did an excellent job of keeping Lewandowski quiet. The Polish international was unable to mark his 250th Bundesliga game with a goal or anything of any note. A combination of great defending and wasteful chances meant that neither Lewandowski or Müller had good games.
But it must be stressed that this result is not exclusively a product of Bayern players doing badly. While the lack of goals can be put down to poor finishing, the opposition played their hearts out and would have given any club a challenge. Frustrating, yes. But from a neutral perspective, very impressive.
What could have been
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but this match could have been different. After opting to start Ribery over Coman, Heynckes’ ace up his sleeve — using Coman’s pace in an attempt to leave the tired Berlin defenders in his dust — was halted after a leg injury to the young Frenchman shortly after his substitution.
Although he seemed to be okay at the end of the game, Coman was taken out to the sidelines for a long stretch of time. Had he been able to stay on the pitch and continue his good run of form, who knows what could have happened?
Similarly, Sandro Wagner’s introduction saw how Bayern can play with two out-and-out strikers. Thomas Müller’s secondary striker role becomes restricted when a defense pulls out all the stops, which is a shame considering how great he has been recently.
Both Wagner and Lewandowski offer similar traits as a player — tough and no-nonsense — but approach games very differently. Wagner fighting for the ball and being more mobile than expected was something that helped disrupt the play.
Had Wagner started this game, would his movement and tenacity have been enough for Bayern to open the scoring early? Great work from the wingers today could have resulted in a goal. Wagner is four inches taller than Lewandowski so maybe he could have utilized his aerial ability as he did against Wolfsburg.
Next: Bayern drop points in 0-0 draw against Hertha Berlin -- Player grades
Conclusion
Regardless, there is nothing that can be done with hypotheticals. Today’s game was underwhelming: no bookings, no events, no goals, one point. It could have been worse. It could have been much, much better, though.