Daily Schmankerl: The aftermath of Bayern Munich vs. VfL Bochum; Radu Drăgușin doubting Tottenham Hotspur move?; FC Barcelona eyeing three major players; Antonio Rüdiger not thinking about leaving Real Madrid just yet; and MORE!

Bayern Munich took care of business against VfL Bochum by rolling to a 5-0 victory in the Bundesliga.

It was not a fluid start for the Bavarians, but eventually Vincent Kompany’s team overwhelmed the home side for an easy victory. Here are some quick hitters on the match:

• As always, let’s take a look at the starting XI:

• We knew there would be some changes, but the continued inclusion of Kingsley Coman over Leroy Sané is starting to become…interesting. That also put Serge Gnabry on the bench as well. Despite not being in the best form of late, Michael Olise still got the nod for the XI, while Jamal Musiala took over for Thomas Müller.
• As expected, Bayern Munich was dominant early. One of the interesting aspects of Bayern Munich’s possession was Coman playing wider than Davies with the left-back sneaking in more inside to make runs forward.
• In the 8th minute Kim Min-jae got smoked over the top due to the high-line (again), Manuel Neuer made a poor decision (again), but Min-Jae made a great recovery run to stop a goal. That was…scary, but not wholly unexpected. Against a better team, it would have been an early deficit.
• In the 16th minute, Olise showed us once again why his talent has Kompany and Bayern Munich so enamored. The Frenchman took a silky smooth free kick that had zero chance of being saved. What a shot!
• In the 23rd minute Bayern Munich’s backline continue its up-and-down play as VfL Bochum’s Moritz Broschinski almost beat Dayot Upamecano.
• Bayern Munich shook off that scare in the 26th minute with another set-piece goal as Joshua Kimmich lofted in a free kick which found back Musiala’s head. The attacking midfielder deftly flicked it backward for a 2-0 lead. Great work from Kimmich and Musiala!
• In the 31st minute, Musiala slid a terrific pass through to Coman, but the Frenchman just couldn’t corral it. Coman’s performances continue to be underwhelming for the most part (continue reading though, he did make up for it). It just feels like everyone (except maybe Kompany) in this relationship knows it is time to move on.
• In the 41st minute Coman stumbled out of nowhere when he was snipered on the pitch. Let’s just say the players, coaches, and front office are not the only club entities who should be called into question these days:

• By halftime, it was clear that Bayern Munich was dominant, but also that the Bavarians were having a lot of trouble generating scoring opportunities. It was another 45 minutes where it felt like the team did not know how to get Harry Kane involved in the final third. Thankfully, the second half would relieve at least a little of that concern.
• In the 57th minute, Kane got right with a banger of a goal where he rocketed a shot past VfL Bochum goalkeeper Patrick Drewes. At that point, the game was effectively over and Kompany could start liberally subbing players to keep things fresh.
• In the 65th minute, one of those subs — Sané — scored the best goal of the match as he battled through some physical play, cut in from the right side to unleash a curler from outside the box that was perfectly place. What a goal!
• In the 71st minute, Coman (!?) said that anything Sané does, he can do better. Coman cut in to his right and shot it to the far post for another picturesque goal.
• Goretzka had a great opportunity to make it 6-0 in the 81st minute after a sensational run, but hit his shot right at the goalkeeper. Ditto for Mathys Tel just a minute later.
• Overall, Bayern Munich did exactly what it needed to do. There were some mistakes — and those absolutely need to be correct — but it was progress. I know that seems like a low bar against the worst team in the Bundesliga, but the team has to start its rebound somewhere and as the old saying goes, you can only beat who’s in front of you. Bayern Munich did the job today, but it will still need to be a lot better moving forward if it wants to continue on the pathway to winning trophies.

If you missed our Initial Analysis, Match Awards, Observations, or combination Flagship/Postgame Podcast, give them a look or a listen:

Radu Drăgușin was linked heavily to Bayern Munich last season, but his stay with Tottenham Hotspur has not exactly gone as planned. Now, he could be looking to make an exit in the near future (end of the season):

FC Barcelona is romping and rolling right now, but it does not mean that the club will be content. Barca is looking at Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies, Bayer Leverkusen’s Jonathan Tah, and Lille’s Jonathan David:

Barcelona are interested in Jonathan Tah, Alphonso Davies and Jonathan David – three players who will be available as free agents next summer.

Bayern Munich ran the gamut of emotions from “We’re back!” during a 4-0 victory over VfB Stuttgart to “Oh, no!” after getting dismantled 4-1 by FC Barcelona in the Champions League.

So, we are here to address all of it and why waste any more time in bantering? Let’s get to it. This is what we have on tap for this edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show:

• Where can Bayern Munich go from here? What should fans feel good about.
• Yes, Bayern Munich can run the table in the Champions League — League Phase.
• In an odd way, FC Barcelona taught us all how important Aleksandar Pavlović is to this team.
• Despite some recent poor performances, Vincent Kompany is shielding his players from the heat.
• What should fans be concerned about?
• Reality is hitting about the career shelf-life for Manuel Neuer and Thomas Müller.
• João Palhinha might not be as good as advertised, but give him time.
• Tough decisions are going to need to be made soon on the wing and center-back positions.
• Oh…and about that report from Christian Falk on internal “debate” over Kompany’s tactics. Let’s discuss that…

Arsenal FC might be getting antsy about its attack and might want to try to get Juventus striker Dušan Vlahović in January:

Arsenal are considering making a move for Juventus striker Dušan Vlahović in January, CaughtOffside reports.

The Gunners had been prepared to wait until next summer to sign RB Leipzig forward Benjamin Šeško, but Vlahović’s contract situation at Juve could be an opportunity for them.

The Serbia international has not made any progress in talks over a new deal with Juve, which could open the way for him to push for an exit.

Vlahović, 24, has scored 48 goals for Juve since he signed for them in January 2022.

Real Madrid center-back and Germany international Antonio Rüdiger is not looking at a move to Saudi Arabia just yet:

Real Madrid’s Antonio #Rüdiger is currently not considering a move to Saudi Arabia, especially not in winter ✔️

The 33y/o feels comfortable and is a key leader at Real.

The centre-back is even open to the idea of extending his contract beyond 2026. However, there are no concrete discussions yet.

Bayern Munich Frauen loanee Karólína Lea Vilhjálmsdóttir is at Bayer leverkusen this season, but she delivered this beauty of an Olimpico for Iceland: