FC Bayern Munich is playing 1-1 in the Bundesliga for the third time in a row – and is sliding into a crisis that others would like to have. But in Munich the clocks tick differently. The air is getting thinner again for Julian Nagelsmann and the cup game in Mainz could already be a final.
In the social networks, one excitement chases the next. This also applies to the Bundesliga, where fans worry about the well-being, sometimes even the existence of their club on a daily basis. Emotionally, not always factually, but always with all my heart. A side effect in this cosmos are usually the fans of FC Bayern Munich. After all, things run smoothly for them much more often than for others. If you think so.
The record champions recently drew three times in a row in the Bundesliga: 1-1 against Rasenballsport Leipzig, 1-1 against 1. FC Köln and now 1-1 against Eintracht Frankfurt. That’s already enough for great frustration. It is not uncommon for the coach to be dismissed, at least in some online statements.
Even for FC Bayern, these are new dimensions that have developed to a certain extent in recent years. The series champion is so far ahead of the national competition that such phases of weakness are already identified as a major crisis.
- Justin Kraft is a freelance writer and blogger at miasanrot.de.
- Born in 1993, he came into contact with FC Bayern through the “Kahn Generation”.
- Soccer-socialized with the “Generation lame climbers“, to whom he even dedicated a book named after her in 2019.
A sense of entitlement that inevitably leads to a large discrepancy with reality. If the past ten years, with two Champions League titles and consecutive championship wins, are the new normal, the record champions and their fans will end most of the future seasons disappointed.
Everything depends on two games
It’s the same this season too. A spectacular winning streak in the Bundesliga is worth nothing if the decisive games are lost against Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 of the Champions League. On the other hand, the current panic will be forgotten for a short time if they make it into the quarter-finals. Two games on which everything depends. Two games, the outcome of which can be largely determined by chance, even with the best possible preparation.
FC Bayern moves in this almost sad reality. That’s why three draws are treated like a losing streak in many places. At least secretly, people long for excitement, entertainment and ultimately also for rough edges. Anyone who has also been as successful as the Munich team in the recent past is afraid of losing. What happens when this streak of dominance starts to crack?
Probably not much. That’s the sober answer. Bayern’s depths are different from those of the 17 remaining Bundesliga clubs. That is why they are difficult to grasp from the outside. And yet they have their justification in view of the topicality. Especially when you consider how dependent the season’s rating is on the two Paris games – and ultimately a little on the performance against FSV Mainz 05 next Wednesday.
The crisis is different than at the beginning of the season
From Bayern’s perspective, it’s not so worrying that they couldn’t win three times. Such a phase already existed at the beginning of the season, when the Munich team failed primarily because of their own chances. But now the situation is different. There is not much left of the strong football development in the first half of the season.
“We play almost everything on the wings, don’t bring a single ball to the dangerous players up front,” Nagelsmann summed it up after the 1-1 draw against Frankfurt on “Sky”. The coach stands for a completely different style of play. His basic idea: position as many players as possible in the area between the two wings. The outer lanes are usually only occupied by one player each, all others focus on the half-space and the center.
Nagelsmann wants to aim for dominance in possession and in counter-pressing. If Bayern lose the ball, they are so well staggered in the crucial areas of the field that a powerful recapture is possible. At the same time, cluttering the central spaces allows for quick combos in the area that is most dangerous. Because even if crosses from the outside can be a tried and tested means, they are statistically not very promising – especially without a clear target player.
Last year, Bayern seemed to have settled into their new direction after a good year’s start. Even in the supposed draw crisis at the beginning, most of them showed very good football. The team seemed to stabilize, especially defensively.
“Two teams” – FC Bayern unrecognizable
But now that’s all gone. After the Frankfurt game, Oliver Kahn spoke of “two teams” – one “before the World Cup and the team after the World Cup”. Munich are currently very wide, badly staggered in the center and so don’t get any speed into their game. That’s atypical for a Nagelsmann team.
But it is much more serious that losing the ball is punished more severely. If the players are already badly staggered centrally with the ball, they are also badly staggered in the defensive transition situation. Opponents no longer necessarily have to go the detour via the outside to get deals, but instead find playable spaces in the center.
But the big question is: why is it? This style of football was obviously not dictated by the coach – which is never a good sign for the man on the touchline when in doubt. Another explanation is the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. A certain inertia is noticeable in the German FCB block in particular. Joshua Kimmich and his blunder in Leipzig, Thomas Müller and his bench seat in the first two games, Leon Goretzka who has been injured again – and even Jamal Musiala hasn’t been able to get going so far. So you could continue with the remaining DFB kickers.
The domestic unrest surrounding Serge Gnabry should not have been conducive either. Almost the entire axis of FC Bayern is currently looking for a form. In addition, Bayern made a conscious decision to have a very short preparation session with just one test match.
The rhythm has been lost
With the good two-month-old rhythm killer, the Munich team seems to have got along worse than other clubs. The long-term absences of Manuel Neuer, Noussair Mazraoui and Sadio Mané were also not a big help. Especially since the series champion had to start directly against three very good Bundesliga teams.
However, excuses are not welcomed in Munich. And so Nagelsmann is now back in focus faster than he would like. Even against Mainz, a win is imperative. “In general, I’m happy that there will definitely be no draw on Wednesday,” joked the 35-year-old at the press conference.
However, if Bayern are eliminated, things could soon get tight for him. Especially since Thomas Tuchel is a big name in the club’s orbit, who would be available after his dismissal at Chelsea. The former coach of Borussia Dortmund has been a topic in Munich several times. If Nagelsmann does not succeed in turning the tide, it will be the case again very soon.
A first small endgame for Julian Nagelsmann?
It is the lot that the Landsberger native drew when he decided to join Bayern Munich. Expectations have always been huge for the record champions. After 2016, however, it exploded. The bar is now so high that coaches will finish below it more often than they will exceed it.
Ultimately, Nagelsmann’s future will not only depend on the Mainz game and the Champions League round of 16 against Paris Saint-Germain, but also on how the team presents itself compared to the current phase and how the club classifies it.
At the moment, the bosses are probably well advised not to read too many posts on social networks. With this sense of entitlement, they would probably have to employ at least two different coaches every season. In retrospect, crises like the current one, including all side effects, often seem much less bad. Nevertheless, the emotional concern of the fans is justified.
In terms of football, this crisis is different. One that can jeopardize the goals of the season even with a sense of entitlement that is reasonable for FC Bayern. It’s up to Nagelsmann to find solutions now. In this respect, Mainz could also be a knockout game for him personally – at least in the medium term. On the other hand, a convincing cup performance could quickly end the current panic in the area. At FC Hollywood it often happens very quickly.