Bayern rescue in dire need: Tuchel’s “masterpiece” checkmates Arsenal

Bayern rescue in dire need
Tuchel’s “masterpiece” checkmates Arsenal

By David Needy, Munich
April 18, 2024, 8:03 a.m

Tactics fox Thomas Tuchel forbids FC Bayern from hurray football and relies on tough discipline. The coach’s tricks nip Arsenal’s offensive power in the bud. The Munich president raves about a “masterpiece” and Tuchel not only saves his club, but also himself.

While the sun shines elsewhere on Wednesday, Munich is drowning in rain. But puddles as deep as the sea and slippery grass cannot stop a sailor. Eight months ago, Thomas Tuchel did not cross from Great Britain to mainland Europe by dinghy. And whether the coach, who headed Chelsea FC before Bayern until 2022, ever went to sea? A gift, because after the tactical performance against Arsenal FC, he could even bring order to the mutiny on the Bounty. But what really counts: Tuchel shows in the second leg of the quarter-finals of the Champions League that he knows what it takes for a sea rescue.

The Bayern tanker went off course early this season (cup exit in Saarbrücken), was dragged to increasingly terrible depths in the Bermuda Triangle (embarrassment against Bremen, Bochum and Heidenheim) and was on the verge of drowning. Even against Arsenal, there isn’t much success offensively at first – but the head coach, the man at the helm who has to disembark in the summer, leads his shipwrecked crew to the safe shore with excellent tricks.

Enough of the puns. Thanks to the 1-0 (0-0) win over the Londoners, FC Bayern can still turn a previously miserable season into something positive. The first semi-final in the premier class since 2020, perhaps there will soon be a trophy after all, a few weeks after half of Germany laughed at the Heidenheim losers. And alongside Joshua Kimmich’s powerful header, it is Tuchel who saves Munich. With his formation and his tactical route.

The face of the champion

“The semi-finals are an important step,” said Tuchel happily at the DAZN microphone. “The discipline we showed was crucial to us winning today and moving on to the next round.” It’s especially on evenings like this in the Champions League that you see “what we’re capable of. We haven’t managed it that often in the league. It’s hard to say right now what the reasons are.” And will the final against Borussia Dortmund come in a few weeks? “Dortmund and we have to do our homework – I wouldn’t mind,” says the coach.

Instead of Thomas Müller, Tuchel brings Raphael Guerreiro, one of his favorite players. This means he positions himself a little more defensively than in the first leg on the left in order to contain Arsenal’s strong right side with Bukayo Saka and Ben White. The plan works, Saka cannot bring any hint of danger from the game in London onto the pitch. Guerreiro became increasingly stronger throughout the game and initiated several dangerous counterattacks, including Munich’s best chance in the first half when he took Noussair Mazraoui on the left in the 23rd minute, whose shot deflected and rolled just past the post. Finally, the Portuguese provides the buttery-soft template for Kimmich’s header goal.

“Thomas Tuchel did an excellent job,” said Bayern President Herbert Hainer in the catacombs after the victory and couldn’t stop raving: “That was a tactical masterpiece.” What he means: The Munich team stand deep, especially in the first half, let Arsenal have the ball, make the spaces extremely narrow, defend aggressively and rely on quick, straightforward counterattacks.

“Konni stuck to Odegaard”

The tactic works: the Gunners’ power football (second best offense in England, one goal less than Manchester City) fizzles out. Saka, Kai Havertz and Co. are completely taken out of the game, Martin Odegaard does have a few moments, but Leon Goretzka and Konrad Laimer annoy him so much when directing the game that he becomes extremely frustrated and taciturn after the game in flip-flops shuffles in front of the press for just a few minutes. “I’m proud of the team’s performance, including Konrad Laimer,” explains Tuchel. “Of course we defended it in the block, but Konni really stuck to Odegaard and played half-man coverage.”

After the duel swung wildly back and forth in both directions in the first leg, tactical lover Tuchel wanted a clear order this time. Discipline instead of hurray football. Anything else was too dangerous for the coach. Significantly, the Gunners had their first real chance of the second half in the 88th minute. Instead of running into the open knife, it’s better to wait and then stab. That’s exactly how it works for the record champions this evening.

Of course, some fans may have looked at the pitch, the TV or the tablet with disappointment: after all, Mia san mia looks different and the days when Bayern could dominate (almost) every opponent (including playfully) are over. Especially in comparison to Dortmund’s win against Atlético on Tuesday evening, when BVB rocked the Signal Iduna Park and carried everyone away emotionally – thanks to the passion and furor on the pitch, the game on the cold, wet Munich pitch sometimes seems boring. Tuchel’s team often doesn’t really know what to do with the ball; there is a lack of creativity and moments of surprise in the central midfield. After winning the ball, it is mainly Jamal Musiala who can initiate chances.

A lot of prevention, little creativity

But: whoever wins is right. Even with destructive play you can win the Champions League like Inter Milan did in 2010. But things aren’t quite that bad for Bayern. It is Tuchel’s very own game of chess, which he prefers every day to a spectacular boxing match and which ultimately takes him to the semi-finals. “The first half was a chess game for both teams, who made the first mistake, who made the first move, who sacrificed the first pawn,” the head coach himself later said. He checkmated Arsenal and simply brazenly changed more defenders when his counterpart Mikel Arteta brings offensive forces.

Great fighting spirit, straightforward style of play, tactically disciplined: FC Bayern have rarely brought that to the pitch in important games this season. The win against Arsenal shows that Tuchel can still achieve his team and that – with an improvement in the play area – Real Madrid are not unbeatable on the way to the final. At least after Kimmich’s goal, the Munich team managed a few minutes of power football with several chances, even though no further goals were scored.

An exit in the quarter-finals would have meant the bitter end to a truly nightmarish season. But with the victory, Tuchel not only saves his club, which is in distress, but also himself. His reputation. Although he was able to win the Champions League with Chelsea FC in 2021, he had to leave just a year and a half after taking office. The tactician has been damaged by the debacles this season and is aware that a season in Munich without a title could jeopardize his reputation. He has now at least partially restored this. The handle pot would certainly help even more.