Four observations from Bayern Munich’s win in the Bavarian derby

Joshua Kimmich proves himself to be a Swiss Army Knife

The real question is ‘what can’t Kimmich do’? He seems to become better and better with each game, whether he is playing as a right back or as a defensive midfielder. Today, he shined again with an assist and overall a ‘man of the match’ performance. He was crucial for Bayern’s defensive tasks and transitional play. It was really unfortunate when he hit that crossbar, as it would be one of the best goals of the week. His partnership with Leon Goretzka is also worth noting. In the last three games, Bayern’s midfield was made from Kimmich-Goretzka partnership, and Bayern scored 10 and conceded only 2 goals. It will be interesting to see what will Niko Kovač decides over Kimmich’s future position. Will he remain playing in midfield, or when Thiago Alcantara is fully fit, will he go back to right back?

Defensive stability

Just to be clear, Nurnberg wasn’t really a fearsome attacking power, but the back line still showed some maturity and confidence. There were no minor mistakes that could lead to conceding goals and the communication between defense and midfield was quite pleasing today. Manuel Neuer showed a confident display and kept a clean sheet in Bundesliga for the first time in almost two months. It’s very important for confidence boost for the entire defensive backline. Jerome Boateng and Nicklas Sule were completely focused today, and both of them had a great game. It seems that Kovač’s criticism had a positive outcome.

Scoring from corners

Bayern has scored three direct goals from corners in their last 3 matches: two against Benfica and one today, against Nurnberg. All of them were scored by Robert Lewandowski! It is always good when a team keeps scoring from corners. Bayern was always quite dangerous in that occasion, but never had a cool finish. I really hope that these last few goals from corners are a tactical thing and not just ‘luck’. If Bayern keep scoring from corners, it will provide them a new dimension of goal scoring opportunity.

Lewandowski on fire

Lewandowski scored two goals today in a man of the match performance. It’s good to see him doing what he does the best — scoring goals! After 14 games, he has scored 9 goals and has 4 assists. He remains as one of the most important Bayern players. It’s also very positive to see his connection with Thomas Muller getting better with each day. Muller appears to be back at his best over the last few games, and there is a (positive) spark with him and Lewa. I hope they keep the tempo!