Bayern Munich: Sobering takeaways from 1-0 loss to Benfica

An ineffective second-string side and poor finishing against Benfica condemn Bayern Munich to a second-place finish in Group C of the Club World Cup.

Having already qualified for the knock-out stage of the FIFA Club World Cup, Bayern Munich would have been hoping to make it three victories in a row in the group stage with a win against Benfica on Tuesday.

Unfortunately, the Portuguese side had other ideas against a heavily rotated Bayern Munich team amid the current heat wave in America. Norwegian winger-Andreas Schjelderup gave Benfica the lead against the run of play in the 13th minute, and that solitary goal proved to be the difference in the match despite the best efforts, particularly in the second half, from the German Champions.

Courtesy of the 1-0 loss, Bayern had to settle for second place in group C and, as a result, will now face group D winners Flamengo in the round of 16 on Sunday. Let’s have a look at some sobering takeaways from Tuesday’s disappointing loss.

Squad rotation was akin to squad experimentation
With passage to the knock-out round having already been secured, a healthy dose of squad rotation from Coach Vincent Kompany seemed in order. However, some of the players chosen for the starting XI and the positions in which they were deployed brought about some head scratching.

Kompany made seven changes to the side that defeated Boca Juniors 2-1 a few days earlier. Tom Bischof, Leroy Sané, João Palhinha, and Dayot Upamecano made their first starts of the tournament, whilst Thomas Muller, Sacha Boey, and Aleksandar Pavlovic returned to the starting lineup.

Collectively, the starting XI was totally out of sync as Bayern failed to register a single shot on target in the first half. Aleksandar Pavlovic was the only player who fared well in the first half. However, Bischoff, who was played out of position as the number ten, and the recently recovered-from-injury Upamecano should be entitled to a pass. Bischof only played the first half, and Upamecano departed 13 minutes into the second half. With Raphael Guerreiro producing another disappointing performance at left-back, one can’t help but feel that Kompany missed the trick with his changes by not giving Adam Aznou a start against Benfica.

Bayern Munich ineffective without key starters
After the impotent first-half display, Kompany had no choice but to turn to the bench. To start the second half, the Belgian coach replaced Serge Gnabry, João Palhinha, and Tom Bischof with Michael Olise, Joshua Kimmich, and Harry Kane, respectively. Jonathan Tah replaced a tired Dayot Upamecano in minute 58, and just after the hour mark, the substitutions were completed when Konrad Laimer replaced Sacha Boey, who was at sea when Bayern conceded the game’s only goal.

It didn’t take long for Bayern to take control of the game after the changes. Compared to the first half with 70% ball possession and pathetically no shots on target, Bayern had 76% ball possession and registered four shots on target in the second half, but Benfica dug deep to keep the clean sheet.

Poor finishing ultimately cost Bayern first place in the group
Whilst Benfica’s goalkeeper-Anotoliy Trubin, arguably delivered a man-of-the-match performance with four excellent second-half saves, the Portuguese side registered their first ever win over Bayern Munich and simultaneously inflicted Bayern’s first ever loss in Club World Cup competition due to poor finishing.

In the previous game, against Boca Juniors, the Bavarian giants, despite some undesirable profligacy, won the match courtesy of a late strike from Michael Olise. However, against Benfica, the profligacy continued until the final whistle. Thomas Muller, who started at center-forward, had a poor game and blew the chance of an equalizer six minutes into the second half when he fired straight at Trubin from inside the box, but the chief culprit on the evening was a familiar one, namely Leroy Sané. The 29-year-old winger failed to convert on two occasions after he was played clean through with just the keeper to beat.

In what was likely his last start for Bayern, Sané didn’t cover himself in glory. However, more significantly, based on the current construction of the team, it appears that it will only go as far as Olise, Kane, and a fit Musiala can carry the attack. Additionally, despite cries from some quarters for Kimmich to return to the right-back position and criticism for his off-the-ball performances in midfield, it’s clear that the midfield organization and creativity are woefully lacking without him playing in the center of the park.