Bayern Munich Opposition Form Report | August 30th-31st

Bundesliga

VfB Stuttgart (0-2) 1. FC Köln

0-1 KOL: Osako 22'
0-2 KOL: Ujah 33'

Stuttgart huffed, Stuttgart puffed, but Stuttgart could not blow Köln down. They held two-thirds of the possession and crossed in the ball 10 times, but Köln's defense would not budge. Yuya Osako and Anthony Ujah provided Köln what they needed and they shut up shop after that. After dropping two points against Borussia Mönchengladbach to open the season, Stuttgart's season has been unfortunate, but they tend to rise to the occasion against southeastern rivals Bayern.

Stuttgart XI (4-2-3-1): Ulreich – Klein, Schwaab, Rüdiger, Sakai (Rausch 77') – Romeo, Gentner – Harnik (Werner 46'), Didavi, Maxim (Kostić 62') – Ibisević

UEFA Champions League

Manchester City (0-1) Stoke City

0-1 SCFC: Diouf 57'

Going up against a thick Stoke City defense, Manuel Pellegrini elected to stick with a smaller, agile front, but Stoke clogged the penalty area to limit the Citizens' attack. One-twos at the top of the box lead to some robust shots, but blocks and saves prevented the ball going into the back of the net. Mame Diouf took advantage of corner-kick positioning to bolt down the field and score through the legs of Joe Hart. Manchester City has looked one of the more powerful teams in the Premier League, but hindering their build up leaves them answerless.

Man. City XI (4-4-1-1): Hart – Sagna, Kompany, Demichelis, Kolarov – Nasri (Navas 63'), Fernando (Fernandinho 38'), Touré, David Silva – Jovetić (Džeko 63') – Agüero

AS Roma (2-0) Fiorentina

1-0 ROM: Nainggolan 28'
2-0 ROM: Gervinho 90+3'

If there is one takeaway from the match, it is how fluid and together Roma is. Even after a slow start, they played together and found an opening with Radja Nainggolan's goal. As one would expect from an Italian side, they were tough to break down, Fiorentina only getting three shots off in the penalty area. The narrative from last year is only building, and they could be a very strong contender in many competitions.

Roma XI (4-3-3): De Sanctis – Torosidis, Manolas (Kiéta 78'), Astori, Cole – Pjanić, De Rossi, Nainggolan – Iturbe (Ljajić), Totti (Florenzi), Gervinho

CSKA Moskva (6-0) Rostov

1-0 CSKA: Natcho P 42'
2-0 CSKA: Musa 52'
3-0 CSKA: Natcho 54'
4-0 CSKA: Musa 59'
5-0 CSKA: Eremenko 65'
6-0 CSKA: Natcho 90+1'

The best word to describe CSKA Moskva's match is impatience, but the word does not have a negative connotation. Their impatience did lead to some turnovers in the midfield, ones that Rostov could not capitalize on. It also lead to a flurry of goals in the second half, including a volley that cracked into the top of the net off of the foot of Roman Eremenko. Their build up is quick and decisive, allowing them to take advantage of space quickly. It is a style that could serve them well once the Champions League rolls around.

CSKA XI (4-4-1-1): Akinfeev – Mário Fernandes, V. Berezutski, Ignashevich, Nababkin – Natcho, Wernbloom – Tošić (Panchenko 67'), Eremenko, Milanov (Dzagoev 62') – Musa (Vitinho 69')

DFB-Pokal

Hamburger SV (0-3) SC Paderborn

0-1 SCP: Kachunga 29'
0-2 SCP: Vrančić 68'
0-3 SCP: Stoppelkamp 87'

The more the that changes in Hamburg, the more that stays the same. Even with Valon Behrami and Pierre-Michel Lasogga permanent members of the Rothosen, their ability to build up the play has improved marginally. The defensive marking is just as putrid, with Kachunga unmarked for his tap-in. Even if Julian Green comes on loan, they are going to be in a relegation fight again unless those two facets improve.

Hamburg XI (4-2-3-1): Adler – Diekmeier, Djourou, Westermann, Jansen (Ostrzolek 71') – Behrami, Badelj – Arslan (Stieber 46'), van der Vaart (Rudņevs 37'), Ilicevic – Lasogga

Players of Interest

Jan Kirchhoff, playing against Bayern for the first time since his loan, left the match with what appeared to be a knee injury. FC Schalke 04 are still awaiting a diagnosis and are hoping that Kirchhoff does not have to miss more time with a knee injury...

After playing in two of Bordeaux's first three matches, Diego Contento was unavailable for Willy Sagnol against Bastia. He flew to Germany to have a minor dermatological surgery, an appointment he made before his transfer to Bordeaux...

Alessandro Schöpf recorded his first assist as a member of 1. FC Nürnberg, setting up Robert Koch for der Club's fourth goal against 1. FC Union Berlin. The 20-year-old has played every minute for Valérian Ismaël, although his contributions have been minimal thus far...

Raif Husic got his third team sheet appearance with Werder Bremen in 1-1 draw with Hoffenheim. He has leapfrogged Richard Strebinger in the goalkeeper pecking order, and played two matches with the Bremen reserves thus far in the Regionalliga Nord...