“Brutal problems against teams that play physically” — Brazzo worried after Bayern Munich slump to FC Augsburg defeat

Overreacting is never really a useful tactic, but there’s no denying that Bayern Munich is experiencing a bit of a crisis. They’ve now gone four Bundesliga matches in a row without a win, the worst of which coming in the form of a 1-0 loss at FC Augsburg, the same team and fixture that they lost last season by a score line of 2-1. They just can’t seem to carry over their Champions League form into the Bundesliga and the loss to Augsburg is the last thing Julian Nagelsmann would have wanted to experience going into the international break.

Another masterclass goalkeeping performance against Bayern was partially to blame for the loss, this time in the form of Rafał Gikiewicz, who made a handful of key saves to keep Bayern off the scoreboard. Still, aside from his individual heroics, it simply wasn’t good enough from Bayern and a lapse in defense combined with not making the most of their chances caused them to drop crucial points yet again and drift further down the Bundesliga table.

Speaking after the match, sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic did not shy away from letting his frustration and disappointment be shown. “We haven’t won in four Bundesliga games. That’s why I’m a little worried. The way we played today, you can’t win in the Bundesliga. We have brutal problems against teams that play physically,” he vented (as captured by Tz).

Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images

His point about physicality was spot on. Augsburg did not shy away from any challenges and were perhaps a bit lucky not to have seen more yellow cards, but that cannot be an excuse for Bayern. They have to rise to the occasion, knowing that a lot of their opponents are going to play that way in the Bundesliga to keep them unsettled and frustrated. This time around, the frustration was clearly visible, especially in attack, where everyone seemed to be just a little bit out of sync with both the timing and calibration of some of their passes.

With the possession they had in Augsburg’s third, it’s easy to argue that far more chances should’ve been created and more could’ve been made from said chances. Moving forward, it simply has to be better and more disciplined, a sentiment that Brazzo echoed. “If we don’t show the discipline, greed and physicality, it won’t be anything. [There’s] no excuses, now victories have to come,” he stressed.

If you want more discussion on Bayern Munich’s loss to FC Augsburg, please check out our Postgame Podcast below or on Spotify — where you can hear what went wrong, what’s been wrong, and how it might be hard to get it all right until the players and coaches get aligned:

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