Nagelsmann’s departure has to go down as one of the dumbest sackings in Munich history if they can’t turn things around against Man City. Bayern Munich have been chaotic so far under Thomas Tuchel as they not only crashed out of the DFB-Pokal Cup, but they also find themselves in a 3-0 hole vs. Man City in the Champions League.
Are these the results Oliver Kahn and Hasan Salihamidžić were looking for?
With Bayern Munich’s epic 3-0 collapse at the hands of Manchester City in the Champions League yesterday, the club now faces the ever-encroaching reality that the team might finish the year without any silverware.
Why? Because in the span of two weeks, Bayern Munich have gone from being treble contenders to getting knocked out 2-1 by FC Freiburg in the Quarterfinals of the DFB-Pokal Cup, they hang on to a slender 2-point lead over Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga, and obviously face a 3-0 deficit against Man City going into the second leg of their Quarterfinals matchup in the Champions League.
Tough situation for Bayern, right?
Well, it actually gets better as it was revealed Sadio Mane and Leroy Sane, two extremely important wingers for this Bayern team, got into a scuffle post-match and ended up full-on throwing hands in the dressing room.
So, just to recap, Oliver Kahn and Hasan Salihamidžić broke up the shaky continuity of Bayern Munich’s season by sacking Julian Nagelsmann…just to completely send the train off the tracks as the club now faces a trophyless season.
Does that sound like good management to you?
Okay, like I said, I know that Nagelsmann wasn’t moving heaven and earth during his year and a half stint as the Bayern manager, but at least he was getting a decent tune out of the squad. He won the Bundesliga in 2021 by eight points over Dortmund and won 2 DFL-Supercups (2021, 2022) while he managed to bring Bayern to the Quarterfinals of the Champions League and DFB-Pokal Cup this season.
Again, it wasn’t great watching Bayern under Nagelsmann as his side couldn’t score against good opponents and were 1 point behind Dortmund in the standings at the time of his sacking, but at least it was relatively stable and united as nearly all Bayern players came out and expressed their sadness after Nagelsmann’s departure. Aside from a great 4-2 league victory in Tuchel’s debut match, Bayern Munich have completely collapsed.
Like I said, Bayern were surprisingly knocked out in the quarterfinals of the DFB-Pokal Cup by SC Freiburg, a team that currently sits 6th in the Bundesliga, and now they’ve just been completely played off the park by Manchester City. Of course, anyone can get smacked by Man City as every Pep Guardiola side has that raw destructive power in its arsenal, but this result was an utter demolition of confidence and composure.
After going down a goal early in the first half, Bayern really were taking the game to Manchester City for 30-40 minutes between Rodri’s 26th minute howler from 15-yards outside the box to Bernado Silva’s header in the 70th minute.
Sure, they didn’t generate too many shots on Ederson’s net, but they were controlling the midfield, generating quality chances, and getting at the Man City backline of Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, John Stones, and Nathan Ake.
Perhaps it was how great this backline played or maybe the Silva goal broke their confidence, but Bayern Munich regressed into a shell of itself after the 70th minute as the City attack pelted Yann Sommer’s net and Erling Haaland was able to poach home a clinching 3rd goal in the 75th minute. It was brutal to watch as a neutral fan, while it must have been torture as one of the Bayern faithful.
And, with everything going against them, the bickering, poor body language, and visual frustration became all too obvious in how Bayern played as Man City easily shut up shop and all but booked their place in the Semi-Finals.
Thomas Tuchel did say that anything can happen when playing in the Allianz Arena, yet I don’t see how Bayern Munich overcome a three-goal deficit to a City side that not only can shut down opposing offenses for fun but can also score eight if they so choose.
In truth, Bayern’s season will come down to whether or not they can hold their 2-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga in their final seven league games.
If they can’t…I think it’s going to be a tough sell for the Bayern fans and owners to keep Kahn and Salihamidžić in their high-ranking leadership positions.
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