With the 1-0 home win in the second leg against Arsenal FC, the FC Bayern he London and now he is in the round of 16 . The game against Arsenal provided the following insights.
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1. Guerreiro's plan was a brilliant move
In it Bundesliga This season there was sometimes chaos in Bayern's defense. In the Champions League, current coach Thomas Tuchel managed to prepare his team to perfection on several occasions. The home victory against Arsenal was his “tactical masterpiece”, as president Herbert Hainer later praised.
Arsenal's right-wing attack, with the speedy Bukayo Saka, is the Gunners' most powerful weapon. FCB left-back Alphonso Davies had problems in the first leg, but the help of his striker Serge Gnabry prevented the worst. Both were absent in the second leg, Davies due to a yellow card suspension, Gnabry due to injury.
Tuchel had to rebuild. He decided not to replace Davies directly with Raphael Guerreiro, but instead moved right-back Noussair Mazraoui to the left and placed Guerreiro supporting him in left midfield. In the dress rehearsal of Arsenal's match against Cologne, Mazraoui had a hard time on the left. Against the London team he managed to destroy, together with Guerreiro, the visitors' offensive game.
Guerreiro helped effectively in defense and also played an important role in Munich's offensive play. Highlight: His great cross for Kimmich's winning goal.
Tuchel put everything on a card with his tactical ability on the left and won. In the summer he will have to leave, but when he was hired to replace Julian Nagelsmann it was said: This coach should make Bayern a candidate for the Champions League again. He achieved it by reaching the semifinals for the first time since 2020.
Indeed, it is difficult to believe that the same team that consistently delivers the best performances in the Champions League under Tuchel is simultaneously losing dominance in the Bundesliga after more than a decade.
Apparently, Tuchel feels more comfortable in the premier class. He reached the final with PSG and won the trophy with Chelsea. If he even reaches Wembley with Bayern, it would be Tuchel's third appearance in a final in five years.
2. Laimer's contribution is underestimated
Of course, it was surprising how well Mazraoui and Guerreiro did their job on the left. Konrad Laimer also played an important role in Bayern's solid defensive work.
The Austrian came out a little poorly in the post-match reviews because perhaps he didn't have many flashy ball movements. To do so, he completely eliminated Arsenal star Martin Odegaard. The quick Saka always gives strength to the Londoners, but Odegaard is the heart of Arsenal's attack.
The fact that Bayern took the Danes out of the game was the key to victory, and thanks to the selfless work of Laimer. Although he didn't get the best ratings in the media, Laimer received more praise from coach Tuchel after the match: “I'm very proud of Konni,” the coach said on DAZN: “He stayed true to Odegaard and played as a half-man.” -marker. He was very focused on that, that's what he should do.”
So Laimer's role was also a crucial part of Tuchel's Arsenal masterplan. And the midfielder fulfilled this role excellently.
3. Kimmich is a right-wing force
It is not the first time that it has been noted how good and important Kimmich is as a right back. Kimmich's performance against Arsenal was actually very good. Note 1!
With his goal, Kimmich became, of course, the Player of the Match. But apart from that, his performance was more than just Champions League ready. Kimmich is one of the best right backs in the world. As a central midfielder, the German international had to listen to criticism again and again, sometimes rightly so. He seems perfectly suited to the right back position.
And this position is really very important. Kimmich is now negotiating a contract extension. If he is willing to continue playing as a right-back in the long term, he would find himself in a fantastic negotiating position: Bayern would find it difficult to get a better player for this position in the transfer market. Kimmich could also be drawn abroad. Losing Kimmich would be very painful for Bayern.
By Sebastian Mittag