Bayern Munich News: The aftermath of FC Bayern’s 5-1 win over Hoffenheim

Die Folgen: Bayern’s 5-1 win over Hoffenheim (Bavarian Football Works)

Bayern Munich entered Sunday’s match vs. Hoffenheim expecting a battle — and that is exactly what it got.

An early red card would make things extremely difficult for Hoffenheim, though, and eventually the visitors fell 5-1 to a Bayern Munich squad that was determined to end a two-game winless streak in the league. Let’s the discussion going, here are some quick hitters on the match:

• As always, let’s begin with a look at the starting XI:

• Kompany left Kim Min-jae out of the squad, which was odd (Kompany confirmed there was no injury or illness). The lineup was what most expected if Konrad Laimer was not ready to start. Josip Stanišić got the nod at right-back. The only other spot for debate was attacking midfielder, where Serge Gnabry started over Jamal Musiala and Lennart Karl.
• Stanišić was more assertive and aggressive early in the match, which was great to see after his subpar outing vs. Hamburger SV last weekend. It was a very strong bounce back effort for the Croatian, who had four tackles and won 8 of 11 ground duels. Stanišić also won 3 of 4 aerial duels.
• Bayern had some decent looks early, but could not make good on them.
• Michael Olise had a good look in the 9th minute, but Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann made the save. On the ensuing corner, Aleksandar Pavlović sent his header just wide of the post.
• When Bayern Munich looks to quickly counter after winning possession with long, direct passes it is a complete menace. If not for some poor decisions early, there could have been some good chances.
• In the 17th minute, Luis Díaz was hauled down in the box and Kevin Akpoguma was assessed a red card, which completely made the game lopsided. Of course, Harry Kane nailed the PK to make it 1-0 in the 20th minute by the time the dust had settled. Baumann guessed the right way, but Kane had some power on his shot.
• In the 27th minute, Kane missed an absolute sitter after a rebound from a Díaz attempt. Kane was ALL alone…he never misses a chance like that…but he did this time.
• It was not a banner game for either Jonathan Tah or Alphonso Davies. Both defenders struggled at times.
• Hoffenheim had a couple of great looks after going down a man, including a 29th minute header from Fisnick Asllani, which caromed off the woodwork.
• You have to give Hoffenheim credit, the visitors ramped up their intensity after going down a man and were not going to go down with a fight. They played with a true sense of urgency and had a willingness to battle.
• In the 33rd minute, both Andrej Kramarić and Bazoumana Touré had great looks and both missed the target.
• Pavlović had a strong game overall.
• In the 35th minute, though, the gaffe of the game went to Manuel Neuer, who flubbed his clearance pass which was intercepted by the outstretched leg of Asllani, who fed — who else? — Kramarić to knot the game at 1-1.
• That was 100% all on Neuer, which begs the question, why was he playing after being sick this week? Again, Kompany has certain tendency not to rotate when needed.
• Kane had another great look in the 38th minute, but he slipped and it cost him a chance to get off a shot from close range after a nicely chipped pass from Gnabry.
• Aside of his yellow card in the 6th minute, Olise did not look like himself again. He, too, might be hitting a wall. He had three key passes in the first half, but struggled with his decision-making and lost possession unnecessarily a few times (11 losses in his first 35 touches).
• In the 44th minute, Díaz was hauled down again in the box and this time Vladimír Coufal was whistled for a penalty, which Kane (#PenaltyMerchant 🤣..we kid, we kid) converted for a 2-1 lead.
• In the 4th minute of added time of first half, Kane did some excellent work carrying the ball from his own to repay the two favors from Díaz and set the Colombian star up for a goal. Bayern Munich cruised into the locker room up 3-1, but it was far from an easy half.
• In the 51st minute, Kimmich sent Kane in a perfect diagonal, aerial ball, but the Englishman did not get a great piece of it.
• Asllani is a problem for Hoffenheim.
• Neuer had a big save in the 57th minute…yikes.
• In the 62nd minute a cross-field diagonal ball from Kane found Olise, who deftly sent a cross to a cutting Díaz for another goal and a 4-1 lead.
• Díaz was clearly Meister of the Match.
• Is is hard to quantify this for anyone who did not see the game, but Hoffenheim was insanely gutty and tough while playing with 10-men. The players just never gave up and fought like hell. That is a top-four team in the league and no one should doubt them at this point.
• Baumann had Kane’s number on everything except PKs as he thwarted him again in the 67th minute.
• For good measure, Díaz added ANOTHER goal in the 89th minute to make it 5-1. What a freaking effort! Díaz drew both PKs and had a hat trick…this guy is awesome.
• Karl had a (very) bad triple scissors gaffe where he knocked the ball out of bounds from Prass, who gave him a very sarcastic thumbs up. All-in-all, though, Karl looked better than he had of late (barring that one moment).
• Overall, Díaz just decided that this was the game to put Bayern Munich on his back. The defense was…decent. The midfield was…decent. But Díaz, he was unreal. Hoffenheim was game and fought like hell, but 10v11 is no way to face Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena. On to RB Leipzig in the DFB-Pokal. There is not time for patting each other on the back, the Bavarians need to refocus and get ready for a big challenge.

If you missed our Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, or Postgame Podcast, give them a look or a listen:

Leipzig closing in on deal for Reitz? (Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg)

RB Leipzig has been linked to Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder Rocco Reitz for a few weeks now and the teams could be getting closer to a deal:

🚨🆕 RB Leipzig are working on a verbal agreement with Rocco #Reitz. Talks are ongoing, with Leipzig offering a contract until 2031 from this summer. Borussia M’gladbach have been informed, but there is no agreement between the clubs yet. More teams are keen on him.

Leipzig want to pay less than his €25-28 million release clause. Reitz is one of the top RB targets to replace Kampl/Schlager, as excl. revealed in mid-January.

Bayern to make serious run at Diomandé (Fabrizio Romano via @iMiaSanMia)

According to Fabrizio Romano, Bayern Munich is going to be in the mix for RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomandé at the end of the season. Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur will there to provide competition:

Bayern, Manchester United and Tottenham ‘will be there’ for Yan Diomande in the summer. PSG could be there as well. At the moment we’re still at the scouting/monitoring stage – no talks, bids or negotiations. It’s still early but there will be plenty of movement, and Diomande will be one to watch this summer.

With how good Olise and Díaz have been this season and with Lennart Karl, Serge Gnabry, and Jamal Musiala already on the roster — plus a developing player in Wisdom Mike — Diomandé might have trouble getting minutes.

Bayern not scoping Alvarez (Sport Bild’s Christian Falk)

Sport Bild’s Christian Falk says you should not be concerned with those rumors linking Bayern Munich to Atlético Madrid’s Julián Alvarez:

❌ It is NOT TRUE: Bayern are working on a transfer for Julian Alvarez. He’s an interesting player, but when I spoke with some guys from Bayern, they said they didn’t need these rumours at the moment – they wanted a quiet transfer window. So they won’t go for him at the moment. They’d love to have a player like him in the team, but with a contract until 2030, it’s a no-go. They did try to sign him in 2023, around the time Harry Kane signed; they were thinking about another striker and whether having the Englishman alone was enough. But, at the moment, it’s not a move they’re going to push for.

McKennie to Inter? (ESPN)

Inter Milan could make a strong play for former Schalke 04 midfielder and current Juventus 27-year-old Weston McKennie:

A move for Juventus midfielder Weston McKennie is under consideration from Inter Milan, according to journalist Matteo Moretto. Inter are believed to be among several clubs interested in the 27-year-old, and they have made an inquiry for him regarding a free transfer. Talks over a new contract are still ongoing between McKennie and Juve, with the Serie A club expected to make another attempt to extend his stay there.

LFC won’t get back into race for Alexander-Arnold (TEAMtalk)

While Manchester City and Bayern Munich have been very (and we emphasize very) loosely linked to Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold, his old club, Liverpool FC, will not be engaging in the proceedings:

Liverpool’s stance on re-signing Trent Alexander-Arnold from Real Madrid has been exclusively revealed to TEAMtalk by sources, as speculation over his future ramps up.

Alexander-Arnold’s departure still lingers as one of the more sour episodes of recent years. The academy product forced the club’s hand when he made it clear he would not sign fresh terms, ultimately sealing a cut‑price switch to Real Madrid.

We exclusively revealed on January 25 that Manchester City are keeping a close eye on developments ahead of the summer, while Bayern Munich are also maintaining a watching brief as uncertainty grows around his long‑term role in Madrid.

Liverpool are another club to have been linked with Alexander-Arnold, which is no surprise given his connections to Anfield.

Despite being fully aware of the situation, Liverpool sources have made it clear that a reunion is not on the agenda. The club believe their long-term planning in the position is already complete.

They have no intention of entering the conversation this summer – even if the former Anfield favourite becomes available.

The Reds are fully committed to Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong, with both viewed as key pillars for the future, even if they have struggled with injuries this season.

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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