Curious case of João Palhinha at Bayern Munich

Ahead of the 2023/24 Bundesliga season, former Bayern Munich coach, Thomas Tuchel, was adamant that a specialist defensive midfielder was needed for his proposed system to work. Tuchel almost got his desired number six in the form of João Palhinha. However, the deal fell through on deadline day because Fulham failed to acquire a suitable replacement.

Almost one year later, with both the player and Bayern still desirous of the move, Palhinha arrived in Bavaria, for a reported fee of €51 million plus €5 million in potential add-ons, to play under new coach Vincent Kompany. Roughly a month and a half into the current season, from Bayern’s nine competitive fixtures to date, the 29-year-old Portuguese international has featured in just six of those encounters with only one appearance in the starting XI.

Let us take a closer look at why Palhinha hasn’t been able to break into the starting XI or even feature more prominently off the bench, and what may lead to increased game time for him. Firstly, we look at what is currently working against João Palhinha.

Kompany’s high-intensity counter-pressing style

Last season the defensive woes in Bayern Munich’s squad were evident, so a logical move to help plug those gaps was to bring in a specialist defensive midfielder like João Palhinha. However, Vincent Kompany’s high-intensity style of football with its reliance on counter-pressing is a stark contrast to that of ‘Tuchel-ball’.

Kompany has Bayern playing with a high-defensive line in support of the possession game and counter-pressing tactics. As such the team plays in a more compact formation which is reliant on catching the opposition’s attackers offside or Manuel Neuer intercepting long balls. Such a system minimizes the need for a number six to shield the back four.