The attack is back and firing on all cylinders.
Going into tonight’s proceedings, this is a match you would expect Bayern Munich to win. However, Bayern’s high number of injuries, keeping the likes of Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upamecano out of the squad, and St. Pauli’s good defensive record this season make this victory far more impressive than positions in the league table might indicate.
Jersey Swap: Elias Saad
Lars Ritzka smashed home a zinger from outside the box to draw the scoreline tight near the end of the match, and David Nemeth had an impressive performance, standing out with his range of high-quality passes. It’s Elias Saad, however, who takes this award. Saad did well to take his goal and looked a thorn in the side of Bayern’s makeshift backline, particularly in the first half. Fortunately for Bayern, strong performances from the St. Pauli squad weren’t enough to ruin the day.
Der Kaiser: Eric Dier
Few players in Bayern’s backline stood out in a positive way, with neither fullback really impressing, and young goalkeeper Jonas Urbig having another sub-par showing between the sticks. Of the two centerbacks, Eric Dier had the slightly stronger match, even though he was unaware of Saad making the run behind him to score St. Pauli’s opener. Dier was strong on the ball as always, and didn’t look out of place in Vincent Kompany’s all-action back line more catered to players like Kim Min-jae and Upamecano. Dier led the team defensively, completing fifteen defensive actions held up by an impressive 9 clearances while achieving a 100% tackle success rate (FotMob). Despite concerns surrounding his initial transfer to the club, Dier has continuously shown his value in Munich.
Fußballgott: Jamal Musiala
Jamal Musiala put forward an excellent performance. If he had had one or two more things gone his way, that would’ve put him in contention for Meister of the Match. Musiala’s electric dribbling style was on full display as the player effortlessly slalomed through the St. Pauli defense on multiple occasions. In the attack, Musiala hit the crossbar and put up a match-high 0.8 expected assists, while making 4 recoveries on the defensive side of things (FotMob).
Der Bomber: Leroy Sané
Leroy Sané has seemingly returned to scoring ways after a long run where putting the ball in the back of the net proved especially challenging for the winger. Sané brought his league tally up to 9 goals this season, scoring a brace from 1.55 expected goals that proved pivotal in Bayern’s victory (FotMob). While critics might point to Sané’s lack of contribution aside from his goals (which came from high xG chances) to detract from his overall performance, the winger’s attacking impetus was truly impressive. Sané was constantly pushing forward and did everything you could ask of from a goalscoring threat by putting himself in the right positions at the right times to get on the ends of chances.
Meister of the Match: Michael Olise
Taking an opposite attacking approach as compared to Sané, Olise also managed a strong showing, but lacked shots taken compared to his creative output. Olise assisted two goals, one for Harry Kane to open the scoring, and another for Sané to restore the lead after the halftime break. Olise created a match-high number of chances at 5, and worked hard off the ball, completing 6 defensive actions (FotMob).
