Bayern Munich remains top favorites to land Leroy Sane and Timo Werner this summer to reinforce their attacking segment, but what exactly both German forwards bring on the table.
It has been seven years since Bayern Munich lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy. The Bavarians are aiming for European dominance once again. The Rekordmeister already seem to have drafted a blueprint for their success and are leaving no stone unturned. They delivered a strong statement by signing Hansi Flick as the permanent head coach till 2023.
The club’s senior officials have been busy negotiating contract extensions amidst the global lockdown. There are 45 days until the summer transfer window opens. Bayern will be focusing on potential summer recruits to continue their preparations for next season.
Speaking about transfers, bolstering their attacking options is an utmost priority for Bayern. Leroy Sane’s name has been on every Bayern fans’ lips. The German winger was reportedly close to moving to Bavaria last summer. However, a serious knee injury in August forced Bayern to pull the plug on any potential deal. The “Sane to Bayern” transfer saga has, since then, been archived with new twists popping intermittently. He reportedly remains interested in moving to Bavaria.
Another German international linked to Bayern in the recent past is Timo Werner. Werner, a former VfB Stuttgart’s academy graduate, has made his way to the top among Europe’s elite forwards. He is currently the star player for RB Leipzig, who are chasing their first Meisterschale under the guidance of Julian Nagelsmann. Hansi Flick is a big admirer of Werner’s talents and remains open to adding him alongside Robert Lewandowski in Bayern’s attack.
Bayern is known for managing their finances optimally when dealing in the transfer window. While bringing both the players to the Saebener Strasse is a mouthwatering prospect, only one is expected to be shortlisted as the final option. Let us have a look at how Sane and Werner can be incorporated in Hansi Flick’s system and what each one of them would bring to the table.
(Note: The statistics in the article have been sourced from fbref.com)
Positioning & Formations
The turn of the previous decade saw a paradigm shift in Bayern’s playing style. Louis Van Gaal deserves the credit for instilling his playing philosophies and ideas into the Bayern DNA. The 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 formations are a byproduct of his coaching system. The arrival of Arjen Robben was not coincidental. That set the tone for how Bayern would play in the future. The rest, as they say, is history.
The 2013 success under Jupp Heynckes using a 4-2-3-1 setup could be attributed to the same principles. Pep Guardiola added more flair using his possession-based, high-pressing style. Flick has adopted a flexible approach by applying a mix of these systems used previously by Die Roten.
It is needless to say, Leroy Sane would fit perfectly in Bayern’s roster. One can vividly picture Sane operating as a left-winger in either of 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 formations. Being familiar with Guardiola’s footballing concepts, Schalke 04’s youth product should feel at home in Saebener Strasse.
Akin to Bayern’s evolution in terms of tactics and formations, Die Mannschaft followed a similar trajectory. Joachim Loew has deployed Sane as an inverted winger on numerous occasions, a position he operated during his early days at Schalke.
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Flick’s malleable tactics also provide room for using inverted wingers. Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman often swap their positions on the flank depending on the opposition’s strategy. Sane, too, can effectively play on the right-wing. Using his pace and dribbling ability, Sane possesses the skills required to emulate Arjen Robben’s signature move.
Meanwhile, Timo Werner likes to play on the brink of the last line of opposition’s defense. It is a tailor-made position for Werner, who makes use of his speed and finishing ability from this stance. This shall make it difficult for Bayern to accommodate Werner alongside Lewandowski in their current structure. The 4-2-3-1 structure is not an option. Nonetheless, Flick has publicly opined an alternate system to use two forwards in the future.
"“If the opposition is sitting very deep with two banks of players in front of their own goal, then playing with two up front is definitely an option,” he said. “We need to be more flexible, also with an eye on next season, and we need to have more options.”"
Considering the above proposal, Werner might likely be a good fit in a 4-2-2-2 shape. He can comfortably operate alongside Lewandowski in this system. This shall allow Bayern to continue playing with two pivots and two wingers. To fill the void of a number ten, Lewandowski might look to drop in the hole during build-up with his corresponding winger given the duties to spear forward after a successful ball progression to the mid-thirds.
Moreover, a 4-3-3 system may also bode well for Bayern with Werner in the attack. We have evidence from RB Leipzig’s current campaign. Timo Werner has been given a rather free role in attack under Julian Nagelsmann. The German striker has been seen charging forward from the wide areas from both sides of the pitch.
By those standards, Hansi Flick can put Werner on the left flank as an inverted forward. Serge Gnabry can be of great assistance to join the midfielders in the build-up from the right-hand side in this system. With sufficient numbers to facilitate ball progression, Werner and Lewandowski can focus on their prime remit to raid the final third and score goals.
Attacking Prowess
Bayern boasts one of the best-attacking squads in Europe. Looking at the current statistics from UCL this season, the Bavarians have clocked a non-penalty xG plus expected assists tally of 6.19. This places them on the first spot in terms of their attacking prowess.
Flick has fine-tuned Bayern’s attack since taking over as the head coach. He is building a fearsome attacking team with Gnabry, Lewandowski, and Thomas Muller as the leading contributors. Getting either of Sane or Werner’s signature appears to be the final piece of the jigsaw
Sane is a menace for the opposition’s defenders. His athleticism allows him to participate in every bit of the attacking phase. Starting from building the attack out from the back, Sane would often drop deep to create overloads. He is the preferred option as a link-up player from the wide areas.
One of the key strengths of Sane is to collect the ball and absorb pressure. Sane, an astute dribbler, can take on three or even four defenders in a jiffy. The German winger attempted an average of 4.51 dribbles per 90, with a success rate of 57% in his previous two seasons with Manchester City. He was the third-best player in terms of goal-creating actions (GCA) with a per 90 minutes metric of 0.77 in the 2018-19 season in the Premier League. While Sane creates spaces for his teammates, Werner aims to thrive in the pockets of space to deliver the final blow.
Werner is not as good a ball carrier compared to Sane. The Leipzig forward has recorded a progressive ball-carrying distance of 141.6 yards per 90 minutes (average metric for two seasons including 2019-20). This compares with Sane’s count of 174.2 yards (average for 2017-18 and 2018-19).
Nevertheless, Werner compensates for his lack of involvement in the build-up by scoring goals. Putting the ball in the back of the net is business as usual for Werner. He has clocked an average non-penalty xG score of 0.56 per 90 for 2018-19 and 2019-20. His role as a free-roaming forward under Julian Naglesmann has seen his xA tally per 90 increase from 0.18 in 2018-19 to 0.27 in the current campaign.
The German striker constantly looks for space in the final third. He utilizes this gap to tuck in behind the last line of defense, collect the ball, and then use his blistering pace to beat his marker. He usually drives forward from the wide areas to strike his adversary’s goal.
Scoring goals; beating defenders in a one-V-one; creating threatening chances. These are the primary skills a coach looks for when signing a player in the attacking department. Sane and Werner fill these checkboxes with aplomb.
Defensive Contribution
Werner and Sane play an integral role for their respective sides in the defensive phase. They operate in an aggressive counter-pressing system. Flick is also an admirer of a similar defensive technique, albeit with nuance. Sane and Werner will be expected to be involved in the first wave of pressure when out of possession.
Sane presses in space between center-back and full-back. His duty in this zone is to protect the inside passes while blocking the channel for the full-back. When the opponents successfully move past the first two waves of pressure to move beyond the mid-thirds, Sane is quick to pull back. He manifests a tireless work rate. Sane has averaged one interception in every two games based on the data from the previous two seasons. He also managed to win 81% of his tackles in the same timeframe.
Werner, diversely, would not be a major support in the defensive phase. In comparison with Sane, Werner takes 632 minutes to make an interception. His tackle success rate is also lower than Sane’s, slightly shy of 60%. However, he does apply more pressure in the attacking and mid-thirds of the pitch.
For every 90 minutes played, Werner has been involved 13 times in a pressing action. Much of this can be attributed to his position as a forward. He constantly aims to put pressure on the opposition’s center-backs as Leipzig keeps a compact structure. His strategy involves denying a clear passing channel in the central area and force the opposition wide or long.
Bayern would gain an added advantage to use Werner’s services in such situations. The partnership of Werner and Lewandowski upfront could facilitate a higher number of chances being converted during a counter-press. Due to this trait of Werner, it is understandable why Werner is one of the top targets for Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool in the summer transfer window.
Sane and Werner are the most coveted German talents of the current age. Any club across the globe would love to get their signatures on a contract. As for Bayern, only one can fit the bill and their shrewd transfer strategy.
In my opinion, Leroy Sane would be a better option to sign at this moment. Bayern Munich displayed an uncanny charisma in the past decade. The legendary duo of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery were a force to reckon with. Sane’s abilities and his playing style would aptly compliment Bayern and his national counterpart, Serge Gnabry.