Dhe disillusionment after the gala came early on Saturday evening, almost at the best time in the Bundesliga. Joshua Kimmich and Thomas Müller tested positive for the corona virus – that was a classic mood killer for Bayern Munich the day after the finally convincing 4-0 (3-0) win against Bayer Leverkusen. Both players are symptom-free and in isolation, their return to the squad before the top game at Borussia Dortmund on Saturday (6.30 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Bundesliga and on Sky) is highly questionable.
Coach Julian Nagelsmann even allowed himself a little negligence in the morning in the best of moods. With a delay of seven minutes, he strolled completely relaxed onto the training ground, where his reservists had long been busy. After the end of the black series, several hundred fans, Nagelsmann and the Bayern bosses no longer had any reason to mope – until the announcement in the evening. The Bayern aces Manuel Neuer and Leon Goretzka had recently been hit by the national team.
The gala against a regrettably weak Leverkusen and the talk of the crisis was “a first step in the right direction,” said CEO Oliver Kahn. However, he emphasized that it was “well advised not to hang it too high”. Now it is a matter of “demonstrating this attitude game after game.” Match winner Jamal Musiala spoke of a “good sign” after four league games without a win. But “we can’t yet say whether the crisis is over,” he confessed. Only the next duels will provide information about this.
“His football IQ is really high”
On Tuesday (9 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Champions League and on DAZN) outsiders Pilsen are waiting, the next Bundesliga opponents are Dortmund and Freiburg, then it’s on to the Bayern Munich shock Augsburg in the cup. “A good game doesn’t mean that it’s all over now,” Musiala emphasized. “We have to keep going, bring the same energy, the same hunger.” The 19-year-old had set the tone. He set up the goals of Leroy Sane (3rd minute) and Sadio Mane (39th), in between he scored himself (17th) after a fine one-two with Müller, who made it 4-0 (84th).
“He’s a key player,” praised Captain Neuer, Kahn said: “He’s giving us a lot of joy at the moment.” Above all, the good interaction with Müller in the offensive center gives hope. “His football IQ is really high,” Musiala said of the veteran, “he understands things that I don’t even see.” He’s trying to keep up, he added modestly, “but there’s always room for improvement”. Nagelsmann was basically satisfied with his stars and spoke of a “good reaction”. What has changed? “What was different was that we made better use of the chances to score.” In coaching he “didn’t do anything differently”, he remained true to his style.
So is Leverkusen good as an encourager? Yes, said Neuer: “We were waiting for a positive signal so that we could also know personally that we were capable of it. We needed that.” That was particularly true for Mane, who had been unlucky for weeks and scored his first league goal since the third matchday. “You suffer with him,” said Kahn, “he’s such a great guy, works a lot.”
Mane strolled out of the arena relaxed with a smile, phone to his ear. Nagelsmann spoke of a “liberating moment” for the sensitive Senegalese, but “the next few games will show whether it was a knot burst”. That applies to all of FC Bayern. Especially with the new corona cases.
