Jersey Swap: Ibrahima Sissoko
VfL Bochum did not put up much of a fight. Bayern Munich effectively dominated the game from minute one to ninety, which is reflected in the stats. Therefore, choosing a player for the jersey swap wasn’t easy — it’s hard to pick someone that stood out.
In the end, it was Ibrahima Sissoko who caused Bayern the most trouble out of the Bochum roster. The Malian midfielder played to the right of Bochum’s center, attacking the space between Alphonso Davies and Kim Min-jae. He was often a nuisance to both players, his pace leaving them scrambling to get back to defend. In the end, Sissoko’s efforts didn’t amount to much — but he did make his markers feel uncomfortable.
Der Kaiser: Alphonso Davies
In the last three years we’ve rarely had games where Davies has locked in, but this definitely counts as one of them. The Canadian dominated his flank with ease, making it practically impossible for Bochum to play freely down their right hand side. He also had an assist for Kingsley Coman in the 2nd half. However, if we’re being honest, he didn’t have much to do with it. It’s not the assist that made him good in this game, it was everything else.
Fußballgott: João Palhinha
Palhinha only played sixty minutes, but in that time he showed that he’s got the dawg in him. The stats may not show it, but there were periods in the game where Bochum managed to regain possession and actually try to do something. The reason that those attempts didn’t get very far was because of the Portuguese midfielder.
Unfortunately, Kompany still seems hell bent on using him as the advanced midfielder while Joshua Kimmich stays deep. Surely this can’t be making the best use of his skills.
Der Bomber: Kingsley Coman
Kingsley Coman didn’t exactly set the pitch on fire, but it was still a the kind of workmanlike performance you can appreciate. He never stopped running, never stopped trying, and that goal he scored might be one of Bayern’s best of the season.
Frankly, the attacking players didn’t do much outside of scoring. In that sense, Coman had the most complete performance, aside from one other player.
Meister of the Match: Jamal Musiala
Jamal Musiala is back, and it looks like the rest did him a lot of good. He’s moving more freely, seems far more engaged in the press, and his assist to Harry Kane was wonderfully orchestrated. The best part is that he didn’t have to play the full 90 minutes, which means he’ll hopefully be fresh for the knockout game against Mainz in midweek.
Looking for more thoughts and analysis on Bayern Munich’s 5-0 dismantling of VfL Bochum, plus some talk about why Max Eberl could be on his way to losing the fan base? Great, then we have you covered with our combination Bavarian Podcast Works Postgame Show / Flagship Show. You can get the show on Patreon, Spotify or below:
