Champions League hangover (the wrong kind) continues to plague Bayern Munich as they slumped to a 1-1 draw with midtable Hoffenheim in a game where Bayern needed a response to the humiliation in Manchester in midweek. This was a pretty drab performance and the result reflects that properly, and thankfully Borussia Dortmund were their usual selves today. Who are the standouts today?
Jersey Swap: The whole of Hoffenheim’s backline
It was a bit tricky trying to think of who stood out for Pellegrino Matarazzo’s side today. The attackers only caused a bit of trouble from time to time and not a consistent one at that. I settled on the defense because although we didn’t make too many chances today, Hoffenheim’s backline (including Oliver Baumann) made sure to keep the team in Red’s goal tally as low as possible. Each one was quietly efficient, put together and they were tough to break. They stopped Leroy Sané on 52 minutes and even had a couple of chances at the other end.
Der Kaiser: João Cancelo
Cancelo had a rather mediocre outing against Manchester City but rebounded in this game. The Portuguese international was flying up and down the pitch and even pinged balls into the box to create goals. He also made a nice tackle to catch the Hoffenheim attacker. Overall, a nice outing from the Man City loanee.
Der Fußballgott: Thomas Müller
Müller hardly played in midweek which got everyone wondering what would have happened if Thomas started that game. Would we have stood a better chance to advance to the semis? Would he not have made an impact? Regardless, Müller got the team going and even set up a few key passes, shame no one finished them off.
Der Bomber: Mathys Tel
I gave it to Tel because I’m sure he would’ve made a bigger impact than our starting ones today.
Meister of the Match: Benjamin Pavard
You simply cannot name a better player than Pavard right now. The 27-year-old Frenchman continues the trend of Bayern’s goals coming from the defenders whilst also putting in a solid performance the whole game. That does it, no one can sign Benji and Bayern must renew him at all costs.
Looking for more thoughts on this debacle draw? Check out our postgame podcast where we break down why the Bayern Munich’s game versus Hoffenheim played out like it did and why it looks like everyone just wants the season to end ... now. You can get the show on Spotify or below.
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