BAYERN MÜNCHEN REPORT CARD: THE CHAMPIONS BUNDESLIGA SEASON SO FAR •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• With the Bundesliga winding down for the winter break, who has starred for the champions and can Pep Guardiolas team retain their title? Heres a look at how Bayern have fared so far. Grade: A ----------- Your Season So Far -- In A Sentence The Bavarian bandwagon shows no signs of slowing with the runaway unbeaten Bundesliga leaders also dominating the so-called Champions League Group of Death with five wins from six. Highlight ------------ Bayerns 7-1 demolition of AS Roma remains etched in the memory. The Reds left Rome in ruins, showing the watching world what the well-oiled Bavarian machinery is capable of when it clicks. Bayern took the Romans apart with a four-goal haul (Arjen Robben brace, Mario Gotze, Robert Lewandowski) inside the opening 30 minutes. Thomas Muller added another from the spot to make it 5-0 at the break against a shell-shocked home side. Substitutes Franck Ribery and Xherdan Shaqiri got in on the act late on to make it seven and even the Roma fans were graciously applauding their illustrious visitors by the end. Bayerns biggest-ever Champions League away win clearly impressed the Pope, who called them in for a special audience the next day. Low Point -------------- Help me out here -- have there really been any low points? Hasnt it been plain sailing basically all the way? Pundits suggested Bayerns star-studded squad would slow down after the wear and tear of a physically draining World Cup, but this has never materialised. Yes, Bayern have suffered more than their fair share of injuries, but nothing that has not been overcome. Philipp Lahms ankle fracture was definitely a slight inconvenience in November. The skipper is in a race to make the second leg of the Champions League against Shakhtar Donetsk next year. But Bayerns results would suggest that they have the squad depth to cope seamlessly, at least domestically, with the longest of injury lists. Even on the European stage, more positives than negatives can be grasped from Bayerns only competitive defeat (3-2 against Manchester City) of the season. The Reds battled gamely for over 70 minutes with only 10 men after Medhi Benatias blackout and subsequent red card. Bayern were bossing the game and leading until Sergio Aguero snatched the game away at the death. Bayern and Ballon dOr candidate Manuel Neuer have conceded four goals in 17 Bundesliga games so far, while the Argentinian Aguero scored an inspired hat trick in just 90 minutes. However, if this was a low point, you get an idea of what luxury problems Guardiola has at the moment. Surprise Star ----------------- Sebastian Rode has been a revelation since his summer arrival from Eintracht Frankfurt on a free transfer. He has rapidly become a firm favourite of Guardiola, meaning the likes of Pierre Hojbjerg and Shaqiri have been pushed even further to the fringes for those scarce midfield spots. Rode has featured in 10 of Bayerns 17 Bundesliga fixtures to date, opening his scoring account with a cracking volley against Hoffenheim. Rode continues to impress with his unselfish attitude and tireless running and recently notched a debut Champions League goal in his first full 90 minutes of action against CSKA Moscow. The 24-year-old has arguably outshone fellow free new arrival Lewandowski and he can now harbour hopes of a call-up to Joachim Lows next Germany squad. Certainly, regular football at Bayern can do his international prospects no harm at all. Must Do Better ------------------- Shaqiri is an easy target with all the signs suggesting that he will move on in the winter break. The Swiss international is already well into his third season in Bavaria with 11 goals in 52 Bundesliga appearances. Tellingly, only half of those 52 were from the start. The stocky midfielder has only completed the full duration on a paltry five occasions, and just once this season. Sadly for Shaqiri, he remains little more than a bit-part player at the record German champions. The stats are rather more revealing in Europes elite club competition. He has only ever started a solitary Champions League game in three campaigns -- in December 2012 against minnows BATE Borisov -- when Bayern were already qualified for the next stage. He is simply not getting the game time from Guardiola. When he does get a chance to impress, the ex-Basel star hasnt really done himself justice. His slumped body language suggests a move is imminent, while the statistics also indicate a move would suit both parties. The Reds paid Basel nine million euros to acquire Shaqiris services in 2012 and are now apparently looking for a fee of around 20 million euros. If Bayern are able to double their money and the 23-year-old gets the regular football his talents deserve, its surely a good deal for all concerned. Great Expectations ------------------------- It is all rather predictable at the moment. Bayern will clearly win the Bundesliga, probably in April. They are just too good for the rest of the competition and its just a question of whether they can remain unbeaten in the league. So, it will be a case of first we take the Bundesliga, then we take Berlin. To explain: Sights will surely be focussed on an extended stay in Berlin from the end of May. First, Bayern will be eyeing a 10th cup success in 18 attempts in the German Cup final at the Olympic Stadium on May 30. Just a week later on June 6, fans will witness the pinnacle of European club football with the Champions League final in the very same stadium. On current form, only Real Madrid seem capable of stopping Bayern in that competition. But the final is not till June; a lot can happen before then.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Dec 2014 11:31:06 +0000
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