Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich explains his fourth-minute red card vs. Darmstadt

When Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich took down Darmstadt’s Marvin Mehlem in the fourth minute right on the edge of the box, things looked to be going to shambles for the Bavarians.

“Mehlem speculated well on my contact. At first I pulled him a bit, but he kept running,” Kimmich explained after the match (via @iMiaSanMia). “When he then fell, there was no longer any contact, I was not responsible for his fall. But it definitely was my own fault because I lost the ball in the first place. It was a very stupid and bitter red card and I’m annoyed that I’ll miss the Dortmund game.”

Kimmich had been the recipient of goalkeeper Manuel Neuer’s pass as Bayern attempted to build out. But as head coach Thomas Tuchel had forecast, the newly-promoted visitors tried to play an aggressive game — and Kimmich was unable to handle to heat from Mehlem’s pressure.

A spectacular Neuer save and two subsequent red cards gave way to eight second-half Bayern goals — but for Kimmich, all that is overshadowed by his early mistake. The Bayern star will now be forced to sit out next weekend’s Der Klassiker against Borussia Dortmund.

Bayern sporting director Christoph Freund weighed in as well.

“Of course it’s bitter. But everyone makes mistakes, mistakes are part of football. He played so many good games, the team also won for him today,” Freund said in post-game remarks on Sky Sports (as captured by @iMiaSanMia).

Interested in more analysis of this crazy game? Is Harry Kane suffering from Erling Haaland syndrome? Why doesn’t Thomas Müller play more? We talk about all that and more in our postgame podcast! Listen to it below or on Spotify.

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