Werder Bremen 0-1 Bayern Munich: 5 hits and flops | Bundesliga 2019/20
Bayern Munich continued their prolific campaign at the Weserstadion where they took all three points home after star striker Robert Lewandowski scored the lone goal of the game. The win meant that the Bavarian giants sealed their eighth consecutive Bundesliga title with two games to spare.
Bayern Munich, as expected, dominated large portions of the game, picking up 63% possession along the way. Although Die Werderaners couldn't see much of the ball, they did a solid defensive job to keep the Bavarians searching almost fruitlessly for chances and goals.
Interestingly, Bayern Munich were clearly intent on attack, with nearly eight out of 11 players consistently surging into the final third. At some point in the first-half, even centre-half Jerome Boateng took a crack at goal from outside the 18-yard box during open play.
It didn't as a surprise when, at long last, just at the stroke of half-time, Robert Lewandowski chested an accurate lobbed pass from Jerome Boateng and placed it beyond the goalkeeper and into the net. However, that was all Bayern Munich would see, even after a good performance.
Notably, in the second half, Alphonso Davies received a red card after his second yellow showing given to him due to blocking Milos Veljkovic's path down the flank. While it seemed like a rather controversial decision for a card, the decision stood and Bayern Munich went down by a man.
However, it wasn't enough men down for Werder Bremen to surge forward and aim for a draw. They didn't create any major chances, either side of a missed opportunity by Kingsley Coman to make it two goals in the 80th minute, as Bayern Munich nevertheless sealed all three points
With these results, Bayern Munich have continued to consolidate their place at the top of the Bundesliga table, ten points away from Borussia Dortmund in second place. Werder Bremen, on the other hand, sit at the other end of the table, deep in the relegation zone.
Without further ado, let's take a look at five hits and flops from the game.
Five hits and flops from Bayern Munich's 1-0 win against Wolfsburg:
#5: Jerome Boateng - Hit
The experienced German international, Jerome Boateng, played exceptionally well against Werder Bremen. Boateng notably contributed to Bayern Munich's sole goal in the game as well.
Surging beyond the halfway line to help recycle possession, Boateng took a shot at goal that was on target and also provided the assist for Robert Lewandowski's goal. It was a remarkable flick towards the surging striker that beat the offside trap with ease and gave Bayern Munich all three points.
Defensively, Boateng was profoundly helpful as well, helping his team's cause by winning four aerial duels, while making two interceptions and three clearances during the course of the game.
#4: Alphonso Davies - Flop
The teenage Canadian star, Alphonso Davies, has been exceptional enough to get himself on the Bayern Munich first team. He arguably played a solid attacking game where he constantly found holes in the left flank and troubled Werder Bremen's defence. However, much of the fault lied in his defensive errors which, against a stronger opponent, might have cost Bayern Munich the game.
For someone who committed only two fouls, it is quite surprising that he picked up a yellow card for each. Davies made only one accurate tackle, one interception, one clearance and still picked up a red card towards the end of the game. He was, perhaps, the only stain on the Bavarians' outing today.
#3: Niklas Moisander - Hit
Werder Bremen manager Florian Kohfeldt clearly had a job for his team today: Do everything you can to stop Bayern Munich from winning, or at least scoring too many. The one player who took that order very seriously was Niklas Moisander. The 34-year-old was a rock in the Werder Bremen defence, and he kept up a brilliant performance that the Bayern Munich attack found difficult to get around.
Moisander chased down players, made interceptions, cleared the ball from danger constantly and also blocked two shots. With Bayern Munich getting into the final third all the time, it's remarkable that Moisander managed not to commit a single foul. While Bayern Munich did eventually score, the experienced centre-back performed brilliantly, and he would be proud of his outing.
#2: Davy Klaassen - Flop
The 27-year-old Dutchman Davy Klaasen did not have a good game today. Even with Davies' red card, Davy Klaassen was probably the worst player on the field today. His team might have played with ten men until Klaasen's 83rd minute substitution because he barely did anything tangible with the ball.
Klaasen had the worst passing accuracy in Bremen's outfield starting players (69%), couldn't manage a key pass or a shot on target, and he made no defensive contributions aside a single tackle and a blocked shot. His poor passing accuracy is all the more shocking because of his position on the field (midfielder) and also because he had the fewest number of passes (35) by any starting midfielder on the pitch today. Klaassen's performance was quite poor on the day, and he would want to move past today as quickly as possible.
#1: Robert Lewandowski - Hit
Of course Robert Lewandowski scored. Not many people would be shocked to see his name on the scoreboard as the 31-year-old Pole has scored a minimum of one goal per game in almost the last ten matches in all competitions. At this point, Lewandowski's clinical efficiency and precision in the final third isn't news any more.
Surging into the box just at the right time to beat the offside flag, Lewandowski took the ball on his chest and didn't wait a moment before putting it past the onrushing Werder Bremen goalkeeper. The loan goal in the game meant that Bayern Munich continued their domestic stranglehold by lifting their eighth consecutive Bundesliga title.
With his 31st Bundesliga goal this season, Robert Lewandowski has a very goodchance of winning the European Golden Boot this season.