Daily Schmankerl: The aftermath of Bayern vs. Bayer Leverkusen; Zlatan scores legendary goal; and MORE!

Die Folgen: Bayern vs. Bayer Leverkusen (Bavarian Football Works)

Bayern dominated Bayer Leverkusen, 3-1, in a costly match yesterday. Here some quick hitters on the contest:

• Leverkusen cannot seem to find its bearings and it never really threatened Bayern. With so much young talent, it just frankly looks like they are under-achieving. Even when they took a 1-0 lead, Bayern was in complete control. The decision to leave Julian Brandt on the bench to start was absolutely puzzling. Not that Brandt lit it up when he was in, but I am not sure how any coach could enter that game without Brandt in the lineup.
• Arjen Robben has a fantastic game and his goal was nothing short of brilliant.

• The Bayern defense was never really tested, but was extremely strong anyway. The entire back four of Jerome Boateng Niklas Süle, Joshua Kimmich, and Rafinha (before the injury) was impressive.
• While he didn’t get on the score sheet, Thomas Müller has an extremely effective game.
• Thiago was a boss at the “6” again.
• Now for the elephant in the room...the injuries. Just a few weeks ago I was lamenting (SO DUMB!) that this Bayern roster might have too much talent and that Niko Kovač might have trouble keeping everyone happy. Now, three players are down with significant injuries and Uli Hoeness is considering signing Tommy Adams for depth. Okay, he’s not that desperate yet, but Corentin Tolisso is likely out for the season and Kingsley Coman and Rafinha both also out for extended periods. Let’s just hope that’s where this injury bug stops and also hope that some of the Bayern reserves can come up to the first team and provide depth.

• Oh, speaking of the possibility for unhappy players, James Rodriguez is becoming Kovač’s first major (aside of a minor tantrum from Robben) issue when it comes to dealing with the rotation. Tolisso’s absence will open up some additional time in the middle of field and make the rotation less painful for James, but it is a situation to watch as his loan term ends in June.

If you missed our Match Awards or Observations, give them a look:

Zlatan Ibrahimovic scores 500th career goal with an absolutely brilliant effort (@MLS)

There are those of you who scoff at aging European players who go to MLS to ride out the twilight of their respective careers and then there are the rest of us, who just think it’s really cool to watch a legend do stuff like this:

will.i.am was at the Allianz Arena yesterday (Bundesliga.com)

Anyone who saw the Fox broadcast saw them spotlight Black Eyed Peas singer will.i.am. Bundesliga.com caught up with the artist, who detailed why he was at the game:

I always come to Munich and see the stadium. I’ve always dreamed of playing [a concert] in the stadium, so after coming here my dreams of playing here are even bigger. Being a part of this; being in the crowd when Bayern were playing, to see James [Rodriguez] play and score a goal… shows you just how awesome he is as a player. The team, the offense and defense was superb, the fans, the energy the love.

A call for fan groups (BavarianFootballWorks.com)

We are trying something here at the Daily Schmankerl and need YOUR help. If you read my man Tommy Adams’ piece about his experience with the FCBNYC Fan Club (if you haven’t, SHAME ON YOU!), you could see how great the event was. So we want to highlight some of these wonderful groups that are out there globally and this is what we need from you:

• Name of the group
• Location
• Year founded
• Leadership (if you have people are kind of running the show)
• Meeting place
• Social media handles
• Pictures

We have 7 clubs on board so far. I’d LOVE to be able to feature a different fan group every week this season. Maybe we can do it, maybe not...but only YOU can help decide the fate of this idea. Send your info to: barrelsportsblog@gmail.com.