It did not take Bayern Munich long to exert its dominance over Holstein Kiel.
How long you ask? Well, roughly 14 seconds as Jamal Musiala put the visitors on the scoreboard extremely early and that paved the way for a thoroughly dominant performance from the Bavarians during a 6-1 victory.
Here are some quick hitters on the match:
- As always, let’s start with a look at Vincent Kompany’s lineup:
- Hmmm. There were several interesting selections. Joao Palhinha got the nod over Aleksander Pavlović and Raphaël Guerreiro started over Alphonso Davies. Those moves were not wholly unexpected. Kingsley Coman over Leroy Sané, Michael Olise, and Mathys Tel was a bit of a shocker, though.
- One thing that should get attention is that Thomas Müller — despite several stellar performances— was once again on the bench. So…about the “performance principle”…yikes.
- At this point, fans have to come to grips with it — Müller is not in the mix for a starting spot and will not be.
- Just 14 seconds into the match, Jamal Musiala danced his way to the net for a quick 1-0 lead. That was not what Holstein Kiel needed to start the match. Harry Kane’s header sprung Musiala forward to put Bayern Munich up 1-0.
- Kane got a goal of his own in the 7th minute after a horrible mistake by the Holstein Kiel backline. Serge Gnabry stabbed his foot out to deflect the ball to Kane, who was left with an easy finish.
- Holstein Kiel was completely overwhelmed by the moment and what was in front of them.
- Musiala had some dazzling footwork in the 13th minute which preceded an attempted pass to Gnabry, which deflected off of a Holstein Kiel defender into the net for an own goal.
- Yeah, this was an absolute debacle.
- The rampant goal scoring did slow down, but Holstein Kiel could not assert any control over the match. The talent difference was just far too great.
- Kane added his second tally in the 43rd minute after a nice fee from Coman.
- Michael Olise came in and scored a goal in the 65th minute after he corralled in a long rebound from an Alphonso Davies’ attempt that was saved.
- Holstein Kiel did eventually get on the scoreboard in the 82nd minute when a cross from Tymoteusz Puchacz found Armin Gigović to beat Manuel Neuer.
- In the 86th minute, we almost experienced a true #ArpTrain revival as Fiete Arp took a deft touch and rifled a shot that hit the crossbar. That would have take my BFW existence full circle.
- A late (and somewhat soft) penalty put Kane at the spot, where he succeeded in getting his hat trick and also make it 6-1.
- Overall, this went as expected. Bayern Munich was completely overwhelming. Musiala, after a week of being under the microscope, came out and played with both an edge and a flair to his game that reminded everyone why he can be so special.
If you missed our Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, or Postgame Podcast, give them a look and/or a listen:
Liverpool FC like Jamal Musiala, but maybe not enough to completely upset its financial status:
Liverpool have been quoted an exorbitant transfer price for one ‘world-class’ player in whom they’re reportedly interested.
According to CaughtOffside, the Reds are showing an ‘increasing interest’ in Jamal Musiala, who’s into the final two years of his current contract at Bayern Munich and appears to be stalling on whether or not to commit his long-term future to the Bundesliga giants.
Sources speaking with the outlet hinted that the 21-year-old’s priority is to stay at the Allianz Arena, although he’s understood to be keen on keeping the situation open because of his ambitions to play in the Premier League.
The Germany international’s asking price is reportedly a whopping €180m (£152m), which obviously presents a major obstacle to Liverpool’s hopes of signing him.
Bayern Munich is back in action this weekend after the international break — and man, it is good to have the Bundesliga back in tow.
We’ll talk about the excitement for more BuLi ball and a whole lot more on this episode. This is what we have on tap:
- Chuck talks about the choppiness of this opening schedule and the return of the Bundesliga after the international break, before jumping directly into the latest controversy surrounding Didi Hamann’s comments regarding Jamal Musiala. Is Hamann correct in saying that Musiala is “individualistic”?
- Can Bayern Munich weather the storm and get a deal with Musiala done? If so, how does a potential pursuit of Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz and the eventual return of Paul Wanner work?
- Is Hansi Flick eyeing a unique double-dip into Bayern Munich’s roster for the summer of 2025 transfer window?
Real Madrid could be feeling similar to Liverpool — and could actually bypass both Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz if you believe this analysis:
Real Madrid have traditionally approached the summer transfer window with the idea that they want to sign the biggest superstar in world football, unless if there is nobody who qualifies as a big superstar, they are currently working to sign that superstar in a later window, or they have no space in their squad to even feasibly accommodate another top player.
In 2019, Real Madrid signed Eden Hazard from Chelsea. In 2020, they didn’t sign anyone because of the pandemic. In 2021, they thought they had Kylian Mbappe signed. In 2022, they also thought they had Kylian Mbappe signed. In 2023, they signed Jude Bellingham knowing they wouldn’t be able to sign Kylian Mbappe that summer. And in 2024, they finally signed Kylian Mbappe.
Even though Florentino Perez just snagged his “white whale” and added him to an attack that already includes Bellingham, Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo Goes, Arda Guler, and Brahim Diaz, that hasn’t stopped the transfer rumor mill from finding new top players to link to the Merengues.
Right now, Bundesliga attacking midfielders Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala are two of the hottest topics in world football and are set to join Bellingham, Rodrygo, Vinicius Jr., Guler, Mbappe, and others in defining the next era of world football.
Therefore, it would make sense for Real Madrid, in their pursuit of signing the best footballers in the world, to at least have a cursory interest in the two best playmakers on the planet heading into 2025.
Musiala may be less likely to be available, but if Bayern Munich struggle in the Vincent Kompany and Max Eberl era and keep losing stars, he could potentially ask for a transfer.
That may seem inconceivable, but, then again, how many predicted Toni Kroos’ exit from Bayern to Real Madrid a year before it happened? Or how about Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona?
If Musiala watches Bayern throw away another Bundesliga title and then sees the likes of Alphonso Davies and Joshua Kimmich out the exit door, perhaps the 21-year-old would consider a bid from a superclub like Manchester City or Real Madrid. But more likely would be a Wirtz transfer. He is so vital to Bayer Leverkusen and is coming off an MVP-caliber season for the undefeated Bundesliga champions. However, Leverkusen aren’t a traditional power in European football and can’t keep Wirtz forever.
The three biggest clubs in European football historically have all been linked to Wirtz, and chances are that the other great 21-year-old German playmaker will only want to join Barcelona, Bayern Munich, or Real Madrid.
The problem is that either Musiala or Wirtz would be an investment of at least 100 million euros. Real Madrid paid around that price for Jude Bellingham, but he is their only nine-figure transfer since the Eden Hazard flop. Real Madrid generally like to avoid paying that much money on players, and while Wirtz and Musiala don’t have the injury baggage or age concerns that Hazard quietly came with, the larger point is that Perez is getting even more selective with his money.
There is a bigger reason why any Real Madrid fan getting excited about Wirtz or Musiala transfer rumors needs to take a step back and not get their hopes up, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the quality of either player – or even the cost of a transfer, which would still get done if Florentino REALLY wants it to happen.
That reason is Arda Guler. Real Madrid have an attacking midfield gem of their own, and even though everyone has their own opinion about who is better, Real Madrid should feel that Guler is better than Musiala or Wirtz.
And that’s because he is their player. You always have to back your players. Real Madrid do. Think about it. When Real Madrid were dropping the league title in 2020/21 and failing to really make ground in the Champions League, there were fans calling Vinicius Jr. a flop and decrying Rodrygo Goes as a passive, backup-level winger.
Guler, though, has the talent and the flashes of end product to be a Ballon d’Or-caliber player, too. Just as Wirtz and Musiala are. But the defining difference is that Guler is already a Real Madrid talent and a big part of their future plans. You just don’t throw that away for the next best thing you see.
The Germany national team and the Netherlands battled to a 2-2 draw at Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam that left a lot of German fans unfulfilled.
It was a game of “could have”, “should have” and — while not wholly unexpected — definitely frustrated fans of Die Mannschaft.
BFW’s Marclk made his solo podcast debut to break down the match, so give it a listen as he covers everything from A to Z that went down in a match that many likely feel should have had a much different outcome.
Well, at least we all have Bayern Munich ready to strike back into action this weekend. It could be a whole lot worse!
Chelsea FC’s roster is overloaded and now the club might be looking to sell off Mykhailo Mudryk:
The Blues are open to selling Mykhailo Mudryk in the January window if his form does not improve. Chelsea committed to a total transfer fee of £89m to sign the winger from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2023.
FC Barcelona sporting director Deco cannot figure out why so many transfer rumors point to the club wanting to sell off midfielder Frenkie de Jong:
Barcelona sporting director Deco has confirmed the club plan to keep hold of midfielder Frenkie de Jong. A report recently claimed that De Jong could consider his future at the club at the end of this season because of his ongoing issues with those in charge, which have been exacerbated by his refusal to undergo surgery on the foot injury which has kept him sidelined since April.
Long-term admirers Manchester United have once again been linked, but Deco insisted Barcelona are not looking to cash in on the Dutchman.
“I don’t understand all the talk about Frenkie,” Deco said. “He has a contract with Barca and we are very happy with him. He is a player we are anxious to see come back because we need Frenkie.
“We want him to stay, but the player will decide at the right time. It is not a matter for now. What matters is that Frenkie plays with us again, because we need him and we value him very much.”