On matchday 20 of the ongoing 2025/26 Bundesliga season, Bayern Munich had to settle for a 2-2 draw with a Hamburg side that was sitting just above the relegation zone.
Having suffered their first Bundesliga loss of the season on the previous weekend, Bayern would have been expected to return to winning ways against a side like Hamburg. However, the hosts rose to the occasion and deservedly took a share of the points.
Saturday’s draw represented the first time this season that the Rekordmeister failed to register a victory in two consecutive Bundesliga matches. Let’s now take a look at what may have resulted in that rarity.
Bayern just didn’t have it on Saturday
Bayern enjoyed 72% ball possession, but quite frankly they didn’t make it count. With just 28 % ball possession Hamburg somehow amazingly managed to outshoot Die Roten 14 to 13 as each team produced five big chances. Based on that statistic, the game itself was an enigma of sorts.
Looking beneath the surface, the reality is that Bayern have been playing a game roughly every 3.5 days since the end of the winter break. Even though the squad had been heavily rotated during this period, the changes weren’t always beneficial, as some players were returning from long-term injury, whilst previously fit players became injured.
Despite the winter break, it seems as if January was a bit too taxing on the team, and it was evident in the last three games, including the narrow victory over PSV in the Champions League.