Bayern Munich: Takeaways from 2-1 victory over Grasshopper Zurich

Takeaways for Bayern Munich from the final pre-season game of the summer as they kick off their campaign against VfB Stuttgart in the DFL Supercup.
Lennart Karl scored for Bayern Munich against Grasshopper Zurich.
Lennart Karl scored for Bayern Munich against Grasshopper Zurich. | Daniela Porcelli/GettyImages
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On Tuesday, Bayern Munich ended their preseason with an entertaining 2-1 victory over Grasshopper Zurich in Switzerland. Having fielded a full-strength starting XI in the previous preseason game against Tottenham, which ended 4-0 in Bayern’s favor, Vincent Kompany decided on a heavy dose of squad rotation against the Swiss opposition with the emphasis on youth. Included in the starting XI were seven players aged 20 or younger.

Considering the composition of the squad, Kompany will be pleased with the result. The youngsters showed both an understanding and a willingness to execute the pressing and high-line tactics that the coach advocates.

Let’s now take a look at some key takeaways from the pleasing 2-1 victory over Grasshoppers.

Effective pressing and high-line

As a result of good application of the pressing and counter-pressing tactics, Bayern enjoyed 74% of the possession along with 88% in terms of pass accuracy compared to only 68% for the opposition. Despite the close scoreline, Bayern also managed to outshoot Grasshoppers 18-9.

A significant portion of credit for the effectiveness of the tactics should go to the midfield double pivot of 20-year-old Tom Bischof and 18-year-old Felipe Chavez. After a bit of a shaky start, the duo went on to suffocate the opposition’s midfield for most of the match. Both played with a high level of energy and the necessary drive to make the pressing game work. Bischof also provided the assist to Lennart Karl for the opening goal. Meanwhile, in addition to providing good support to Bischof, Chavez also showed his attacking flair, and in the first half, he came close to scoring from long range after completing a 180-degree turn on his marker.