Robert Lewandowski’s brace was the only positive as Bayern Munich slumped to a shocking 4-2 defeat at the hands of VfL Bochum.
Bayern Munich suffered a major shock on Saturday afternoon as they were handed a 4-2 thrashing by VfL Bochum. It was the first win against Bayern in 18 years for the newly-promoted Bundesliga outfit, with the result now offering Borussia Dortmund an excellent opportunity to plug the gap at the top back to just six points.
As the scoreline suggests, it was a bizarre game for the Rekordmeister, who started the game, capitalising on an early opportunity to find the opener in the ninth minute. However, Bochum responded strongly, immediately levelling the scoreline in the 14th minute through Christopher Antwi-Adjei.
With the Bayern Munich defence looking vulnerable as ever, Thomas Reis’ men were able to exploit a lot of space in the final third. They utilised it to their potential, winning a penalty that was converted by Jurgen Locadia in the 38th minute. It was shortly followed by two wonder goals from Cristian Gamboa and Gerrit Holtmann, giving Bochum an unprecedented 4-1 lead heading into half-time.
As many might have predicted, the second half saw Bayern dominate the proceedings. But they were unable to create enough goalscoring opportunities and were very wasteful when they did. While Robert Lewandowski still managed to pull one back for his team in the 75th minute, it was never enough to spark a potential comeback.
Here, at the Hard Tackle, we will run the rule over the Bayern Munich players in their shocking defeat to VfL Bochum this weekend.
Sven Ulreich: 5/10
It might be natural for Bayern Munich fans to blame Sven Ulreich for the defeat. In truth, however, the stand-in ‘keeper barely had a chance of saving any of the four goals scored by Bochum, including the penalty from Locadia, which he had guessed correctly. If anything, the former HSV ‘keeper did a great job of denying Bochum from further extending their lead, notably keeping out Holtmann early on in the second half.
Anyone pointing fingers at Ulreich clearly has no clue about football, but why even engage in that discussion.
— Bayern Central (@bayerncentral) February 12, 2022
Benjamin Pavard: 2/10
Benjamin Pavard gave a poor account of himself on the right hand side of the Bayern backline. The Frenchman looked too pedestrian when taking on the opposition attackers and was beaten way too easily, at times. The defender certainly appears to have reached his potential in terms of his defensive capabilities.
Niklas Sule: 2/10
Niklas Sule became the focal point of the Bayern game due to his decision to join Borussia Dortmund after the end of the season. The backlash appeared to have impacted his performance, with the imposing centre-back looking rather distracted in dealing with the Bochum attackers.
Dayot Upamecano: 1/10
Dayot Upamecano was by far the worst performer for Bayern in the first-half abomination that saw them concede four goals. He had a hellish afternoon dealing with Holtmann, who beat him on several occasions. In addition to his lack of competence, Upamecano also conceded the penalty that led to Locadia’s goal in the 38th minute, and the former RB Leipzig star was deservedly subbed off at half-time.
Lucas Hernandez: 3/10
It was one of those games where even Lucas Hernandez lacked the solidity to deal with the attacking threat of the opposition. The Frenchman visibly struggled in dealing with the threat of Antwi-Adjei, though he was much more solid after the restart.
Joshua Kimmich: 3/10
Joshua Kimmich was among the major underperformers for Bayern Munich in this game against Bochum. The German was left alone in midfield, which saw him getting overrun by the likes of Anthony Losilla and Patrick Osterhage. Kimmich offered very little to the table and was a liability in the middle of the park, though the majority of the blame should be given to Julian Nagelsmann.
Joshua Kimmich: "We put in our worst performance of the season over the whole game today. We lacked everything you need to win a game. If something like this happens once a season, then it can happen – but it already happened against Gladbach, so we need to be careful" pic.twitter.com/QswtPRxtMp
— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) February 12, 2022
Serge Gnabry: 3/10
Serge Gnabry showcased glimpses of his talents by occasionally offering those energetic runs from the flanks. But the attacker’s lack of defensive solidity allowed Bochum to overrun the Bayern defence, thus leading to the calamity in the first half.
Thomas Muller: 4/10
Thomas Muller played a key role in the build-up to the first goal from Lewandowski. Apart from that, the German barely had a sniff in the proceedings, struggling to impose his authority in the final third and create space for his teammates.
Leroy Sane: 3/10
Leroy Sane was another Bayern attacker that struggled to make things happen in the final third. The former Man City winger looked startled by Bochum’s onslaught. The opposition’s excellent pressing scheme also made it difficult for him to influence the game in the final third.
Kingsley Coman: 4/10
Kingsley Coman deserves credit for feeding Lewandowski for the early opener. But the Frenchman didn’t provide much after that, often failing to make himself useful up against Gamboa.
Robert Lewandowski: 6.5/10
Robert Lewandowski was perhaps the only bright spot in an otherwise dire afternoon for Bayern Munich. Even while his team was suffering, the Pole worked his socks off to try and find the ball into the back of the net. He was rewarded late in the proceedings when the striker improvised brilliantly to convert a volley and bagged his second of the night, though it wasn’t enough to spark a comeback.
"Lewandowski always scores the 4th or 5th goal of the game and plays bad when Bayern play bad" pic.twitter.com/cnIYkAnEAu
— ❤️? NK1 ?❤️ (@Lewanbayern) February 12, 2022
SUBSTITUTES
Corentin Tolisso: 5/10
Bayern Munich certainly enjoyed more possession and control in the second half, but it was certainly not because of the sole substitution of Corentin Tolisso at half-time.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting: 5.5/10
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was a nuisance inside the box, thanks to his imposing presence and ability to sniff goalscoring opportunities. Might have been more effective if he had started the game!
Marcel Sabitzer: 5/10
A late replacement for Coman. The former Leipzig captain clearly isn’t suited to this Bayern Munich team, and it has been evident in his performances this season.
