It’s early in the season but Bayern Munich already have a full blown injury crisis to deal with. On the eve of the club’s inaugural Champions League league stage game against Dinamo Zagreb, it was announced that Sacha Boey had suffered a meniscus tear and would be out for “several weeks.”
With Josip Stanišić already sidelined, Vincent Kompany has to deal with the reality of coaching his UCL debut without a single natural right-back. It’s a good thing he has a few backup options.
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In addition to the two right-backs, Hiroki Ito is still out with a broken foot. With this in mind, Vincent Kompany doesn’t have many options regarding his starting XI.
Assuming the most likely configuration, we’ll probably see Harry Kane up top with Jamal Musiala behind him, Michael Olise and Serge Gnabry on the wings. Aleksandar Pavlović likely returns to the starting lineup next to João Palhinha, with Joshua Kimmich being moved to right-back.
With this defensive reshuffle, Bayern Munich should be able to cope with the loss of Boey and Stanišić for the next few weeks. Dayot Upamecano and Kim Min-jae likely retain their spot in central defense, and Alphonso Davies returns to the XI at left-back. With Manuel Neuer in goal, here’s what the lineup could look like:
Looking for a more in-depth preview of the game? Curious about the formation Vincent Kompany has been using lately? We discuss all that and more in the latest episode of our podcast! Listen to it below or on Spotify.
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