Three observations from Bayern’s 1-0 win vs FC Augsburg in the Bavarian Derby

Robert Lewandowski: Die Maschine

Robert Lewandowski. Clinic. Almost literally a human-robot. Bayern got a penalty in the 13’ minute. With Lewandowski taking it, it was as good as certain to be 1-0 for Bayern. Lewandowski was Bayern’s most consistent threat and if it wasn't for his near-post opportunity that he hit off the goal, the game becomes 2-0 and the floodgates could have theoretically opened up.

With his now record-breaking 22 goals after today, there is legitimate belief Robert Lewandowski may not only put up a better tally than his non-German Bundesliga record of 34 goals last year but might also beat Gerd Müller’s total Bundesliga goal tally. Exciting times for Robert Lewandowski & FC Bayern.

Lackluster display, fortunate result

With the exception of a fortunate penalty — and fortunate penalty miss by Augsburg — Bayern should not have won this match. Kimmich and Hernandez were playing quite well, but, as is the norm this year, Benjamin Pavard has shown that he needs to seriously improve...or be left out of the starting XI. While he pushes forward, in almost every avenue of the game Kimmich is still a better right-back this year than Benjamin Pavard. The wingers that played today were all inconsistent. While they did well to get into opposition territory, their final passing was, to put it lightly, not good.

The difference between the first half and the second half was also stark. Bayern played aggressively and cohesively during the first half, but as substitutions were made in the second half, such as Leroy Sané and Jamal Musiala, Bayern played noticeably worse.

As I said earlier, if Augsburg makes that penalty, it's a draw. This match did little to alleviate the concerns currently surrounding Hansi Flick and Bayern, even though they secured the first clean sheet in approximately three months.

Augsburg holds firm

On the flip side, FC Augsburg was able to hold on to this match to the very end. If it wasn't for an unfortunate penalty and penalty miss, this would’ve ended as a draw for Augsburg. Augsburg was able to interrupt Bayern’s final passes consistently by putting bodies in the way. On the counter-attack, they were relatively dangerous in the first-half but genuinely so in the second half after Jensen’s substitution. He proved to be Augsburg’s most consistent threat in this losing effort. A lot for Augsburg to be proud of, but also they should be disappointed in wasting their best opportunity.

They also got lucky with Lewandowski's far-post miss off the post, as that would have made the score 2-0. But overall Augsburg put in a gritty fight towards the end. It may not mean points, but it should help them keep their head high.