Tuchel names them clearly
Kimmich distracts from Bayern’s problems
04/09/2023, 12:10 p.m
With his provocation of the Freiburg fans and players, Joshua Kimmich causes a stir after FC Bayern’s victory. As a result, the performance of Munich in the Bundesliga away game moves into the background. That triggers concerns for coach Thomas Tuchel.
Joshua Kimmich shuffled completely relaxed in flip-flops through the cabin aisle. Bayern Munich’s “Aggressive Leader” didn’t show that he had turned an entire stadium against him shortly before. After the 1-0 (0-0) win at SC Freiburg, the national soccer player admitted that his provocations were unsportsmanlike – but the 28-year-old couldn’t get his broad grin off his face.
“I got carried away, you don’t have to do that, I understand everyone who says it was unnecessary,” Kimmich said. “You don’t have to cheer in the direction of the opposing fans. But there were a lot of emotions. There was pressure, there was a lot. The win was brutally important for us,” said the midfielder, who with his constant smile during the statements about his wrongdoing but somehow irritated.
Kimmich may have been secretly happy that he “only” had to explain the tumult he had triggered after the final whistle – instead of the questionable condition of the record champions before the quarter-final first leg in the Champions League at English champions Manchester City on Tuesday (9 p.m./Prime Video and in the live ticker at ntv.de) to speak.
Tuchel lacks “self-confidence and is therefore in top form”
Because although Bayern managed to take revenge for losing the cup quarterfinals against Freiburg four days earlier (1:2) and they continue to lead the Bundesliga with a two-point lead over Borussia Dortmund, they still have to improve enormously in the premier class. The fact that Munich were only slightly better than the Sport-Club in front of 34,700 spectators in the sold-out Freiburg stadium and that they needed a long-range shot from central defender Matthijs de Ligt to win, fueled doubts about the form.
So it was just right that Kimmich caused a distraction, triggered pack formations, saw the yellow card – and was allowed to talk diligently about all of that afterwards. “When we entered the pitch before the game, the stadium announcer made it clear that they had beaten us in the cup. Then there was a ten-minute short film during the warm-up, where it was made clear again that we lost. That went deep “, said Kimmich: “So it was a bit of a counter-provocation from me.”
The fact that the people of Freiburg jumped on it and got upset made the distraction from the actual topic almost perfect. So in the end it was almost only coach Thomas Tuchel who had to provide information about the upcoming cracker in the premier class. However, Julian Nagelsmann’s successor made no secret of his concerns.
“I have openly addressed the fact that we lack a bit of lightness, self-confidence and creativity – and are therefore in absolute top form,” said the coach: “But we are aware that we need an absolute top performance. It’s one of the tests at the moment. We know about their quality – and they’re also in top form. We have to be very smart. Then the visor goes up – and there’s a fight.” After all, Tuchel has the “Aggressive Leader” for it.