Bayern Munich 4-0 Wolfsburg: Initial reactions and observations

Initial reactions and observations

• Bayern Munich finish their last two games of 2021 in style, albeit against relegation candidates. This was a good showing by Nagelsmann’s men, now hopefully the winter break allows the coach to rediscover some of Flick’s juju.
• Wolfsburg are so bad, it’s hard to believe they were playing in Europe this year. They play like a 2.Bundesliga team (and not one of the good ones).
• Thomas Muller got yet another assist. Wonder where that puts him in the all-time calendar assists ranking.
• Jamal Musiala remains a gem. He’s proven he can be a CM now as well. What’s next? Right-back?
• No more back-threes, please.

---

Full time: Bayern Munich win 4-0.

---

87’ — GOAL! Lewandowski finally gets his goal! 4-0 now.

---

59’ — GOAL! Leroy Sane curls it in, that was a perfect Robben goal.

---

56’ — GOAL! Upamecano makes it 2-0! Assist by Muller.

---

45’ — The second half is underway! Can Bayern score any more goals?

---

Halftime observations and analysis

• The back-four was back! Aaaaand then it was gone. Bayern Munich started the game with the same four-man backline setup that downed Stuttgart, but for some reason Nagelsmann switched back to the back-three after going 1-0 up. Bayern’s been struggling to generate chances ever since.
• Dayot Upamecano has been doing his best Niklas Sule impression. His interceptions are arguably better than the big German, but he is an inferior passer.
• Robert Lewandowski still looks unhappy. Hope this isn’t going to become a thing going forward.

---

Halftime: Bayern Munich lead 1-0.

---

7’ — GOAL! Thomas Muller taps in a rebound from a Gnabry shot. Dominant star t by Bayern.

---

Kickoff: We’re underway in Munich!

---

One hour until kickoff: We have lineups! As expected, Nagelsmann has chosen his best lineup, with Upamecano coming in for Niklas Sule. We don’t know if Sule’s hurt, but he did miss the final training session. Looks like a good lineup for Bayern.

---

Bayern Munich are set to bid 2021 farewell with one final game against Wolfsburg in front of an empty Allianz Arena. It’s been a long year of football, consisting of more than a few surprises, plenty of great games, and some crushing disappointments. Now, all of that comes to an end with just one more game — the final matchday of this year’s Hinrunde.

Julian Nagelsmann still has barely any midfielders available, but with Marc Roca and Jamal Musiala stepping up recently, that shouldn’t be a huge problem. Given that this is Bayern’s final game before a three-week winter break, you shouldn’t expect any rotation from the coach. All the main starters — guys like Robert Lewandowski (who’s chasing an individual milestone, by the way), Thomas Muller, Leroy Sane, and the like — should be in the starting XI.

It’s Bayern time.

---

While you’re waiting for the game, why not check out our weekend warmup podcast?

---

Match Info

Location: Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany

Time: 8:30 pm local time, 2:30 pm EST

TV/streaming: ESPN+, Find Your Country

Tips for commenting:

1. If you’re a new member, feel free to introduce yourself! We’re mostly very friendly! Also, we’re from all parts of the world so don’t feel shy if you’re from a country that doesn’t seem represented on the blog.
2. If the comments section starts to slow down for you, just hit the refresh button and keep commenting. It’s not necessary to have the whole comments loaded at one time while you’re just casually following along.
3. Keep the sorting to “newest” to easily follow the conversation. It puts the newest comments at the top.
4. Here at BFW we celebrate every goal like they do in the stadium: with a chant. The goal chants are for everyone to participate in! Even if you’re lagging behind the others, keep replying to the most recent call of the player’s name. Even if you missed the first call, just start from the second, and so on.
5. While swearing is allowed within reason, please be polite to your fellow posters and avoid gratuitous obscenities. Racist, homophobic, and misogynistic language is not allowed whatsoever.

Check out our beginners thread if you have any more questions. That’s about it. Auf geht’s!

Looking for an unending well of Bayern Munich content? Sign up for an SBNation account and join the conversation on Bavarian Football Works. Whether it’s full match coverage and analysis, breaking news, podcasts or something completely different, we have it all.