Bayern Strikes
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Four takeaways as Bayern Munich narrowly get past Schalke

By Kiran Thakare

GELSENKIRCHEN, GERMANY - MARCH 3: (L-R) Benjamin Pavard of Bayern Munchen, Leon Goretzka of Bayern Munchen, Joshua Kimmich of Bayern Munchen celebrate goal during the German DFB Pokal match between Schalke 04 v Bayern Munchen at the Veltins Arena on March 3, 2020 in Gelsenkirchen Germany (Photo by Jeroen Meuwsen/Soccrates/Getty Images)
GELSENKIRCHEN, GERMANY - MARCH 3: (L-R) Benjamin Pavard of Bayern Munchen, Leon Goretzka of Bayern Munchen, Joshua Kimmich of Bayern Munchen celebrate goal during the German DFB Pokal match between Schalke 04 v Bayern Munchen at the Veltins Arena on March 3, 2020 in Gelsenkirchen Germany (Photo by Jeroen Meuwsen/Soccrates/Getty Images) /
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MUNICH, GERMANY – FEBRUARY 21: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) Michael Cuisance of FC Bayern Muenchen ,looks on, sits on the bench prior to the Bundesliga match between FC Bayern Muenchen and SC Paderborn 07 at Allianz Arena on February 22, 2020, in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)
MUNICH, GERMANY – FEBRUARY 21: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) Michael Cuisance of FC Bayern Muenchen ,looks on, sits on the bench prior to the Bundesliga match between FC Bayern Muenchen and SC Paderborn 07 at Allianz Arena on February 22, 2020, in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) /

No minutes for fringe players

Flick has been spot on about his lineups since taking over the job in November. The German manager has quickly found his best starting XI and stuck with it for most of the games. He has also been managing the squad properly by giving fringe players minutes from the bench.

However, the game against Schalke saw a different approach from Flick. He started the best possible team in those circumstances and included four academy players on the bench. Jann-Fiete Arp also made it to the matchday squad after a long time while Mickael Cuisance was also available on the bench.

Some sort of playing time for these players would have boosted their confidence, but Flick decided against making changes in the second half. He only made one substitution at the end of the game as Zirkzee replaced Corentin Tolisso for the final five minutes of the match.

Next. Five backup striker options for Bayern in summer. dark

It was a strange move from Flick as his in-game management is generally to the point, making substitutions in the second half. The likes of Cuisance and Arp have been struggling to get playing time in the first team, so this was an ideal opportunity for them. It will be interesting to see what plans Flick has for these players if he ends up getting the job in summer.