Ratings v Bayern Munich – A winnable second half?
By Merlion
April 10 2024
It is the worst performance of 2024 to-date, and showed a sign of nerves and inexperience, paying too much respect to Bayern Munich. It was actually our strongest team, the team that shot us to the top of the table last weekend.
Tuchel outwitted Arteta due to his vast experience at Bundesliga as well as a stint in EPL.
Bundesliga teams play a fast-paced game with two wingers and the swift transition from defence to attack and vice-versa. And there is the gegenpressing introduced by Klopp Dortmund then and which improved all attacking Bundesliga team plays.
Arteta did nothing wrong by fielding his strongest 2024 team but found their vulnerabilities by attacking those half-spaces with quick wingers in Sane and Gnarby with an intelligent Harry Kane linking up all attacking plays in the middle or from deep.
Tuchel had studied millions of datasets via video analytic and attacked those half spaces at left flank and right flank. Kiwior played the worst game of 2024 and panicky Gabriel misplaced pass setup him for his downfall. He is slow on the turn, lacks the pace to chase Sane and that is that. In EPL games, Gabriel is the savior to cover for Kiwior's slow turns, but Tuchel made sure Kiwior is isolated.
And the choice for the return leg is either a superb man-marker and quick turning Tomi or an inverting Zinchenko, hopefully will have an effective Gabriel covering behind him.
Of all the people, few expected Saliba to get jittery like Gabriel and executed that kind of tackle (always associated with Gabriel) in the box. There again, he is always put under pressure with Bayern attacking the half-space between him and White, always putting him under pressure with a quick turning Gnarby or a strong Kane.
Expecting inverting FB like against EPL team setups, Arteta prepared his team as such but was sold a pig in a poke.
Instead, Bayern full backs played like wingers with Sane and Gnarby inverting into half spaces and then cut into centre inside when near our box. It was the inter-passing between these two wingers that scored and created 2 goals against us.
Laimer and Goretzka dominated the midfield and there is nothing Jorginho-Rice can do anything against them, especially Rice who seemed out of his depth and lacked tactical awareness to help out Jorginho to battle against them to win balls.
Back to the drawing board for Arteta to fix the Defence. But he accidently discovered another new tactical formation with both Trossard and Jesus are in-form player now and the key is Jesus creating havoc in the box, press-resistant and has the peripheral vision to pick up a teammate in a goal scoring position with a quick pass. Trossard is a quantum leap ahead of Martinelli in this aspect of moving into a goal-scoring position anticipating Jesus' passes; and a more deadly scorer than Martinelli.
In summary, lessons learnt from Bayern game is that Arteta had accidently discovered another strong tactical formation with an attacking Trossard and Jesus, Havertz dropping behind them and given a free role as a half-forward and pressing strong in midfield, and Rice as a no. 6 to start winning balls in the middle.
Tomi or Zinchenko as LB and both Odegaard and Saka need more coaching to execute one-touch and half-touch passes to bypass quick-pressing Bayern players, always shutting both of them to turn and pick a pass. Tuchel had correctly identified the main dangers from Arsenal and shut them down effectively.
Even playing the worst game of 2024 to-date, we managed to score 2 goals and missed 2 great chances. It is only half-time, and we are still in a strong position to win during the 2nd half. Is Mikel Arteta up to bearding Bayern Munich in their den? We will see soon
6 - Raya - a polite rating with no saves required but let in 2 goals. The first goal was due to him not asserting himself and shouted out to Gabriel to leave the ball, move leftwards to receive a return pass in the clear. That was always Arteta tactics and why the heck then a panicky Gabriel forgot all the training pitch drills? It was a very poor penalty with Raya moving 1 or 2 steps right side before even Kane's kicking leg reached the ball!
7 - White - brilliant performance in 1st half and last-ditch defender to cut out dangers. Superb inverting FB but both Saka and Odegaard need more works to use him as an outlet for quick passing when both of them are pressed immediately by Bayern players. Bayern exposed both Odegaard and Saka as "slow thinker" and just bad in executing one-touch football to beat quick 2- or 3-man press.
6 - Saliba - panicky under pressure and lost his usual composure. Inexperience and too much respect for Bayern Munich. Understanding with White needs more coaching to guard again the half-space which Bayern exploited so cleverly. With this game under his belt, and he is a quick learner, expect Arteta to correct their mistakes to erect the solid Twin Tower in the return leg.
6 - Gabriel - he tends to crack under pressure and that is a major concern as we have 7 high-pressure "must win" EPL games. What a horrible pass under no pressure to Kiwior. Wonder did Raya shouted at him to leave the ball to him? Other than that, he is a physical monster of a CB to keep Kane quiet. But he is always playing on the edge with yellow card waving just over the horizon.
5 - Kiwior - what more can I say that all his excellent performances in 5 consecutive EPL games undone by his worst performance in 2024. After that howler, his confidence seemed shattered and never at his best again. His mentality is questionable, and it is best to discover it now rather than at one of those "must-win" EPL games. Sane outpaced him easily but he is supposed to be one of the fastest players albeit running in a straight line. As a defender, you need to be quick turning like Tom. Sadly, Bayern showed Kiwior out as a slow-turning defender like Rob Holding.
6 - Jorginho - a highly technical Bayern midfield has the measure of him and just ran rings around him. A slow single pivot does not work with quick-thinking quick passing Bayern players. What works at EPL games does not mean it will work with a highly technical and skillful European club. Back to the drawing board.
6 - Rice - He is simply lost as a no. 8 and exposed as lacking football intelligence against a quick-passing and quick-pressing Bayern. He offered no help to Odegaard nor any help to Jorginho to stem the quick pressing executed by Bayern players in midfield. But he visibly improved in 2nnd half as a no. 6, with an inverting Zinchenko helping out in midfield. Against highly technical side, Rice is better as a no. 6 with an inverting Zinchenko helping out plus Trossard ahead of him.
7 - Saka - he needs to be stronger and press-resistant like Jesus when surrounded in tight spaces. Plus, he must be stronger to standup to physical challenges and cutout his growing perchance to dive. Referees will take note and tend not to give penalty in 50:50 situation. Be honest and standup as much as possible. His dribbling skill needs improving plus develops better peripheral vision to executive instant half-touch or one-touch to beat 2- or 3-man press which is happening all the time. He is our main source of attack and Arteta better develops more efficient passing regime to help out Saka from holding the ball too long inviting brutal tackles to his legs. Saka must develop fast on this aspect else he may very well end up like Wilshere, a career cut shot by too many injuries with his insistence on taking on too many players before being hacked down all the time.
6 - Odegaard - yes, he seemed to disappear while under pressure. Of course, if you are given even a split-second to pass or half-a-yard to turn when being pressed instantly after receiving the ball. Bayern realized he is the only source of playmaking, shutting him down mean Arsenal cannot attack. Arteta will need to develop more outlets of inter-passing amongst Odegaard, Saka, White, Havertz and Rice to improve the potency of Odegaard's playmaking with multiple outlets that can pass into clear channels and open space with one-touch football.
5 - Martinelli - he was awful and never in the game. Kimmich put him in his pocket effortless. His old malaise appears as a brainless roadrunner that can't beat his manner and blindly crossing the ball with his head down. Arteta should make him watch endless videos of Gnarby and Sane on the art of cutbacks and playing passes on the floor. He is just a quick flat-track bully in EPL and found wanting against highly technical European sides who so easily neuter him. Will he ever develop to his potential under Arteta?
7 - Havertz - one of the better performers that can pass, can press and a physical presence in the box. Pity he was cleverly isolated by Bayern with Odegaard and Saka struggling to pass to him. Arteta should play without fear with Jesus as no. 9, Havertz as a hybrid no. 8 in a free role as half forward, ahead of Rice as the single pivot. The synergy of an inverting Zinchenko, Trossard, Jesus, Havertz and Rice is a deadly attacking threat.
Subs:
7 - Zinchenko - he instantly transformed the team in 2nd half with better midfield control and Arsenal more of an attacking threat. He frees up Rice to play as no. 6, better than his headless chicken 1sst half. For all his defensive defects, Gabriel was covering efficiently behind him.
7 - Trossard - what an impact player! He transformed the attack with his intelligent running, and certainly way ahead of Martinelli in the pecking order. Martinelli is better as a super sub now.
7 - Jesus - reason why Arteta bought him. Barring Havertz and Odegaard, he is press-resistant in the box, holding up the ball superbly and this time, passed the ball cleverly. He must start in all the remaining EPL games now. Let's hope it is the beginning of a "peak" Jesus who will win us games.
6 - Partey - slow, ponderous and still not up to speed. Certainly, not a starter anytime soon.
6 - Mikel Arteta - exposed as a journeyman by Tuchel in being so predictable and naive to play against Bayern Munich with tactics that worked so effectively in EPL games. Think again.
We need a Master Craftsman's performance from Arteta and Coaching Staff to win the return leg.
It is a winnable game, but will Arteta show his Masterclass and outfox Tuchel next week?
"The idea is to be more unpredictable every year and be more difficult for the opponents to stop and nullify what we want to do. That’s what we have now, especially at the back and in the midfield the options we have, to open up the spaces, we have many more options than we had last year.” Mikel Arteta