The FC Bayern attack could use a reset.
Structure or freedom? Positional play or relationism? Is it the genius of the coach — or the wizardry of the players?
Debates like these are recurrent in modern but whatever it is Vincent Kompany is cooking up at Bayern Munich, it has been working for most of this season. The Belgian coach, a former defender himself, is at the helm of one of Europe’s most fearsome attacks and spoke about incorporating the outrageous set of weapons in his arsenal into what still needs to be a coherent style of play.
Do you just take Harry Kane, Luis Díaz, Michael Olise, and Jamal Musiala, and say: let them cook? Well, sort of. In Kompany’s philosophy, it is more about carving out ‘space for creativity’ — that is, the freedom within the structure.
“That’s what it’s all about for me at every moment. I want our technically strongest players to have the ball, the four or five up front leading the line,” Kompany shared in an interview last fall with club magazine Säbener 51 (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “These are the guys who make the difference. The question is: How do we get the ball to them? How do we create space for them? How do we give them three or four options? A dribble, a one-two, a cross… If they have the choice, we’ve done a good job. Then they can show what only they can do.”
That was in November. And while the Bavarians are still on track to smash the Bundesliga goals record, the picture has turned cloudier with the new year, making it a good time to revisit those comments. Bayern has only mustered two goals in now four straight matches, dropping points twice and conceding regularly. There has only been one clean sheet in seven tries — all while the club’s vaunted stars, Musiala and Canadian dynamo Alphonso Davies — have made their comebacks.
Yes, players have been absent due to injury and illness as well, and neither Musiala nor Davies have fully settled in to a rhythm as every-match starters yet. But with these new looks and combinations have come fresh uncertainty to what was an all-consuming Bayern machine in the Hinrunde. A dribble, a one-two, a cross…all too often lately, Bayern’s attack is singing just a little off key.
It has been a rough and busy January, and the Bavarians are running haggard. What can Kompany do now to get his squad past this creative block?
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
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Category: General Sports
