FC Bayern: Great respect for Kleindienst – still favorites against the Foals

At the start of the new year, FC Bayern has to travel to Mönchengladbach. Can the lead at the top of the table be maintained without Jamal Musiala?

Borussia Mönchengladbach have repeatedly surprised against Munich in the past and were in strong form before the turn of the year. We take a look at the opponent.

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While it is now clear that Manuel Neuer will be in goal, it is also clear that Jamal Musiala will miss the first game of the new year. His creative impulses on offense will be sorely missed and it remains to be seen how coach Vincent Kompany will replace him. Nevertheless, FC Bayern goes into the game as favorites to ensure a good start to 2025 with a win.

In the last three games in December, the Fohlen collected seven points and celebrated two wins in a row (against Kiel and Hoffenheim). Since the seventh matchday, the team has only lost one game and has been particularly stable in defense.

Although Gladbach is loud whoscored has a weakness with 16.1 shots allowed per game (second worst value in the league), the defense only allowed ten goals from open play – a value that is almost at Bayern level (nine goals conceded). The vulnerability to counterattacks (three goals conceded) and set pieces (four goals conceded) remains problematic.

In addition, the number of expected goals against is loud understat At 26.74, it was significantly higher than the 20 hits actually conceded. So FC Bayern will have opportunities – they have to use them consistently.

Gladbach’s offensive is particularly convincing thanks to Tim Kleindienst. With 13.9 shots per game, the Foals rank fifth in the league, with Kleindienst contributing a large part of that. The attacker has already scored nine goals this season and also provided four assists. His teammate Franck Honorat, who has five assists, is slightly injured but is still expected to play.

Kleindienst is not only a goal threat, but also a physically present striker: with 38 fouls committed, he leads this statistic in the Bundesliga. He also won the third most duels in the league. Kleindienst will be a big challenge for the Bayern defense, especially Eric Dier and Minjae Kim.

Borussia’s exact tactical orientation is still unclear, but coach Gerardo Seoane has consistently relied on a 4-2-3-1 system. Nicolas is in goal. A back four with Scally, Itakura, Elvedi and Ulrich defend in front of him. Reitz and Weigl form the double six, with Reitz often running at the opponent and working on the wings with the full-back to double opponents.

In front of them there is a line of three with Honorat, Plea and Hack. If Honorat is unavailable, Reitz could move into his position while Sander takes on the slightly more offensive role in defensive midfield.

In the storm, Kleindienst remains active. Against Bayern, Gladbach will probably rely on a compact, defensive style of play. Loud whoscored Only 25% of their games take place in the final third – the third lowest figure in the league after Kiel and Heidenheim. This trend is likely to continue against FC Bayern.

Coach Seoane emphasized in the press conference before the game that his team had to recognize the moments “when you can press higher and put the opponent under pressure.” At the same time, it is important to “bear the pressure in a compact formation” in your own half. In addition, goalkeeper Nicolas has to have a strong day.

For Bayern, this means pressing high early, preparing the defense for small duties and exploiting their chances efficiently, as has happened in some games. Even without Jamal Musiala, playful solutions must be developed from the presumably high amount of ball possession.

Leroy Sané and Michael Olise in particular have a great responsibility here. It will also be exciting to see whether and how Leon Goretzka (if he actually plays for Aleksandar Pavlović) will act in the game.

If FC Bayern manages to implement tactical solutions against Gladbach, who are probably defensive, nothing stands in the way of an away win.

Expected lineups:

Borussia Mönchengladbach:Nicolas – Scally, Itakura, Elvedi, Ullrich – Reitz, Weigl – Honorat, Plea, Hack – KleindienstFC Bayern Munich:Neuer – Laimer, Dier, M.-J. Kim, Davies – Kimmich, Goretzka – Olise, T. Müller, L. Sané – Kane