After Bayern Munich’s 3-3 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt, Thomas Müller was asked about the series of plays that led to the game-tying goal.
In describing the action, the veteran spoke honestly, which came across as critical toward Joshua Kimmich to some observers.
“It was a free kick – played short. The ball comes back and then Jo dribbles a bit into the tight space. You could say that’s not exactly what we want. As tight as it gets then, we actually want to play out from the side again,” Müller on DAZN (as captured by Bild).
Bild broke the sequence of plays down like this:
What the fan favorite means: Before the goal was conceded, Kimmich had played a free kick from the left half of the field to Kingsley Coman (28) on the sideline. Under pressure from the opposition, the Frenchman played the ball back to Kimmich, who then left his position as number six and played a bad pass on the crowded left wing.
According to Müller, this is an action that Kompany’s Bayern team does not want. Apparently, the internal instruction in such situations is to move the ball away from the zone in which the opponents are pressing.
Kimmich, of course, saw the critique, but was unfazed.
“It’s always important that we deal with each other openly and honestly, and that’s how Thomas is. It’s not the case that my ball loss led to a direct goal. But in general, you can always make different decisions on the football pitch. It’s always about making decisions. Sometimes you make good ones and sometimes bad ones,” Kimmich told Bild (as captured by @iMiaSanMia).
Water under the bridge and all of that…
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