Bayern Munich kicked off their 2023 Bundesliga season away at the Weserstadion with a comfortable 4-0 win over Werder Bremen. Harry Kane made a statement on his debut and the strength in depth of Die Roten proved too much for Die Werderaner who were second to most balls on the night.
It was a perfect response from Bayern after last weekend’s defeat against RB Leipzig in the DFL Supercup. Thomas Tuchel was unhappy with the team’s performance last weekend, but he will be pleased with the collective performance on Friday. There are plenty of positives to get to, so here are our Werder Bremen vs Bayern Munich Player Ratings.
Goalkeeper
Sven Ulreich – 7
Wasn’t asked to do much on the night and when you keep a clean sheet I don’t think you can be ranked any lower than a 7. Made a good save in the first half down low to his right, although the flag would have ruled it out anyway.
Wasn’t always overly comfortable coming for the ball, and on more than one occasion his defenders bailed him out in terms of clearing a ball that most keepers would claim. Bayern are still on the hunt for a keeper while they wait for Manuel Neur to return to full fitness.
Defenders
Noussair Mazraoui – 7.5
With Benjamin Pavard subject to interest from Inter Milan, Mazraoui got a start at right-back and based on his performance against Bremen, he won’t be letting it go. The final ball wasn’t always there, but his willingness to get forward was notable. He hit the post in the first half with a fizzing shot and then forced the keeper into a save in the second. If he can just improve on the final ball, he’ll be an interesting player to watch this year. He didn’t get a goal or assist, but he deserved one.
Alphonso Davies – 8.5
Davies recorded two assists on the night and he was a constant threat down the left working with Kingsley Coman. His speed allows him to both create chances and recover his defensive positions and while he didn’t have a great deal of defending to do, what he did have, he did calmly. A strong start to the season for the Canadian left-back.
Dayot Upamecano -7.5
Considering Bayern kept a clean sheet, they had periods where you could see that Upamecano and Kim had not played together very often, with both players being dragged to the aerial challenge and loose balls finding Bremen players. Had they been facing a better side, the results made have been different, but of the two, I thought Upamecano was the better player and was more often than not in the right position at the right time.
Min-Jae Kim – 7 (Subbed off 67 minutes)
Picked up a yellow card when a Bremen player got the wrong side of him, and sometimes got dragged towards the ball instead of picking up the spare player, but it was a solid if unspectacular display from the South Korean defender. Better days are surely to follow, and the more the two center halves play together, the better the communication.
Matthijs de Ligt – 7 (Subbed on 67 minutes)
It’s nice when you can bring on one of the better young defenders in European football and de Ligt did exactly what you expected. He won a lot of balls in the air, maintained possession, and saw the game out without any fuss.
Midfielders
Leon Goretzka – 7.5 (Substituted off 79 minutes)
Thomas Tuchel wanted to play Goretzka because of his height and physicality, deciding that he offered the better matchup for Bremen, and I have to say he got it spot on. Goretzka worked tirelessly inside and while he had some opportunities to score which he squandered, he was very tidy on the ball and snuffed out any threat. He was also helpful with some highballs into the box. A very solid game for Leon.
Joshua Kimmich – 8
I thought Kimmich was outstanding tonight, he had one moment towards the end of the game where he lost the ball within his own areas, but overall he controlled the game throughout. Calm on the ball, had a good range of passing, injected pace when needed, and took the sting out of the game when he had to. There really wasn’t a lot to complain about tonight for Kimmich, who showed why he’s key for this Bayern side.
Konrad Laimer – 6.5 (Substituted on 79 minutes)
Laimer wasn’t really on the pitch long enough to impact the game, and while he had some involvement in the late goals, he looked a little unsure in possession. Not enough time to base any definitive opinions on for the season, but I think Tuchel got the team selection spot on preferring Goretzka to Laimer.
Forwards
Leroy Sane – 9.5
Sane was the best player on the pitch for me. Two well-taken goals, plenty of movement, plenty of pace. His first touch was outstanding, he seemed to glide past defenders at will and his combination of pace and close control was too much for Bremen. He had 3 shots on target and put 2 of them in the back of the net. If Bayern gets this version of Sane consistently this year, they’re going to cause problems for most sides in Europe.
Jamal Musiala -7.5 (Substituted off 84 minutes)
Musiala seemed to be at his best picking the ball up deep and carrying it forward. He completed 80% of his passes and while there were moments where he lost possession, his ability to ride tackles and keep bringing the ball forward terrified the Bremen defense. He had a much better first half than the second half, but the young forward showed why he’s considered one of the most exciting prospects in world football.
Kingsley Coman – 7.5 (Substituted off 84 minutes)
If you wanted to, you could largely copy and base the above segment for Musiala in here for Coman. The French winger was very tidy on the ball completing 89% of his passes, but he did lose possession on 14 occasions. He sometimes trusts his pace too much and tried to do too much, but overall he had a very nice game. He struck the post in the second half and had another chance that he put over. He failed to register a shot on target which he’ll be disappointed with.
Harry Kane – 9.5 (Substituted off 84 minutes)
Harry Kane has already started paying back that astronomical transfer fee with a goal and an assist on his debut, and in truth, he could have had more. Bremen keeper Pavlenka made a very good save down to his right to deny Kane, but the England man scored a typical Kane goal drifting off the shoulder and finding the back of the net in the second half. It took Kane just four minutes to register an assist, with an excellent pass through the middle to set Sane free.
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Thomas Muller -7.5 (Substituted on 84 minutes)
Like de Ligt in defense, it’s nice to be able to introduce someone of Muller’s quality in the dying moments of the game. His best years may be behind him, but his intelligent give-and-go led to an assist for Sane’s second goal, and he created two big chances in 12 minutes. If you can consistently give Muller 10-20 minutes at the death against tiring defenses, his intelligence will open up opportunities.
Mathys Tel – 8.0 (Substituted on 84 minutes)
This is a big year for Tel who was adamant about staying at Bayern and using this opportunity to learn from Harry Kane, and scoring within 10 minutes of coming on is not a bad start. Tel picked up the ball in the box and rifled a shot past the Bremen keeper. Tel is a very gifted forward, I just hope Bayern can give him enough time to truly develop his talent, as he has the potential to be one of the best strikers in the world.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting – 6.5 (Substituted on 84 minutes)
Although he didn’t impact the game like Tel and Muller, Choupo-Moting showed his ability on the ball while navigating his way out of trouble late in the second half, deep in his own territory. When you don’t score and you don’t assist, and you’re only on the field for 10 minutes…it’s hard to score above a 6.5.