Bayern Munich: Takeaways from 9-2 demolition of Dinamo Zagreb

Defensive lapses almost bite Bayern again

At the start of the second half, injured Manuel Neuer was replaced in goal by Sven Ulreich. Through no fault of Ulreich, a poor start to the second half almost undid Bayern’s first-half dominance. Amazingly, the Croatian side struck twice in the space of two minutes to make it 3-2 after 50 minutes. In the 53rd minute, Ulreich had to make a brilliant save from close range to prevent Dinamo striker Marko Pjaca from drawing his team level. At this critical stage in the game, Bayern fans were left wondering if the team had left its concentration along with their skipper in the locker room during the interval. Fortunately, Bayern regrouped shortly afterwards and went on to score an additional six goals without reply.

Notwithstanding the seven-goal margin of victory, concentration at the back remains a spot of bother. Kompany needs to find a way to get the best out of Kim Min-jae and Dayot Upamecano in the heart of defense. The Belgian coach will also hope to see Hiroki Ito back in action soon to boost his options in the heart of defense.

Musiala- main man for Bayern Munich

In the first half, Jamal Musiala was excellent in attack. It was his neat chest pass that set up Guerreiro for Bayern’s third goal. After the poor start to the second half, it was Musiala who once again seized back control of the game for the hosts with his guile and determination. Within three minutes of Zagreb’s second goal, Musiala broke free in the box and almost scored Bayern’s fourth goal from an acute angle. It took a strong pair of hands from the goalkeeper to stop the ball from arrowing into the roof of the net.

Kane with four goals was deservedly the man-of-the-match, but Musiala was the catalyst for Bayern’s domination albeit his name didn’t appear on the scoresheet.

Bayern always try to make decisions based on both footballing and economic reasons. However, if there is one player on whom it might be worth breaking the bank, it’s Musiala. Die Roten definitely needs to extend the contract of the 21-year-old midfield wizard sooner rather than later.