The era of Niko Kovač at Bayern is over. After a devastating 5-1 defeat against Frankfurt last week, Bayern decided to sack the Croatian and move on with Hans Dieter Flick as interim coach. Therefore, the German Clásico at the Allianz Arena this weekend between Bayern and Dortmund promised to be an interesting clash. With both clubs performing below expectations thus far this season, winning this prestigious battle was important for both of them. In the end, Bayern hammered Dortmund beating them 4-0 and secured the crucial three points.
Our tactical analysis will show the reasons for this great win by Bayern and explain why Dortmund were not able to stand against the Bavarians.
Line-Ups
Flick decided to use a 4-1-4-1 with David Alaba and Javi Martínez as centre-backs. Alphonso Davies played left-back, while Benjamin Pavard played right-back. This unusual back line was formed due to injuries on the one hand and Flick’s decision to play Joshua Kimmich as a deep-lying playmaker on the other hand. Further on in midfield, it was somewhat surprising that Leon Goretzka and Thomas Müller started instead of Thiago and Coutinho. With this decision, Flick showed that he rather preferred a more pressing-oriented approach, using players who run a lot.
His counterpart Lucien Favre used a 4-4-1-1 formation with Mario Götze and Julian Brandt up front. Jadon Sancho started on the right wing even though he was injured. Towards the end of the first half, he had to be substituted. With Marco Reus and Paco Alcácer being on the bench for similar reasons, Favre had difficulties finding a suitable starting XI.
The image below shows these theoretical line-ups taking shape on the pitch. Bayern’s back four stays U-shaped, while Kimmich is the lone holding midfielder. Goretzka and Müller push high, while Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman stay wide.
Dortmund’s 4-2-3-1-like shape is also visible. They more or less mirrored Bayern’s midfield triangle at first. The back line pushed rather high but went deeper as the game progressed.
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