FC Bayern Munich’s defensive problems became clear in the 3-3 draw against Frankfurt

Is this the first crisis under new head coach Vincent Kompany? After a perfect start, Bayern Munich failed to win their last three games. A draw against Leverkusen (1-1) and a defeat against Aston Villa (1-0) was followed by a 3-3 draw against Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.

While Bayern struggled to score against Leverkusen and Villa, the team was undone against Frankfurt by in-form striker Omar Marmoush. The Egyptian striker countered Min-Jae Kim’s early lead (15′) by scoring the equalizer (22′) and then feeding Hugo Ekitike (35′). Dayot Upamecano (35′) and Michael Olise (53′) gave Bayern the lead for the second time, but then Marmoush (90′) scored late to give Frankfurt the lead.

“Let’s just stay calm,” Kompany told DAZN after the game. “It was a great performance by the team today. We had so many chances. We probably deserved more. We have to move on more simply, go our own way and.” I am convinced that such performances will lead to results in the end. I don’t have much hope if we continue like this, stay calm.”

In Munich’s volatile environment, the biggest challenge will be to remain calm. In the Bavarian capital, emotional highs and lows come in quick succession. The recent run is a great example. After all, after an excellent start with big victories over Holstein Kiel (6:1) and Dinamo Zagreb (9:2), Kompany has already been compared to former head coach Pep Guardiola.

The result in Zagreb in particular would have been spectacular. But this also included a weak phase at the beginning of the second half, in which there were a few moments of chaos in Bayern’s defense that almost led to an equalizer.

This saying was perhaps a warning shot for what happened against Leverkusen, Aston Villa and especially Eintracht Frankfurt. In all three games, the opponents only needed a few good moments to capitalize on defensive errors by Bayern’s back line, anchored by Kim and Upamecano.

“Of course we can talk about the goals we conceded or we can talk about the chances we created,” said Kompany when asked about defensive mistakes, evading the question somewhat. “Ultimately, we as coaches have to improve things step by step. Some things are imperfect, but today I have to focus on everything we did so well. Anyone who still remembers last year: This game was dangerous for us.”

Sure, the result was an improvement on last year, when Bayern lost 5-1 in Frankfurt. But it’s also hard to ignore the fact that Frankfurt needed very few chances to get a result. According to the Bundesliga, the game ended with an xG of 0.89 to 2.25 in favor of Bayern. In other words: three Frankfurt corners were enough to steal a point.

However, that was predictable after Aston Villa used largely the same game plan in the Champions League during midweek. Once again the Bayern defenders had to contend with quick attackers and with Frankfurt’s Marmoush being Germany’s most in-form striker, this result was perhaps predictable.

Against this background, the plan to win against Bayern was drawn up. Teams like Villa and Frankfurt have shown that quickly countering the record champions with fast and technical strikers leads to success. In fact, Frankfurt might have won the game if they had had their nominal number 1 Kevin Trapp in goal and not the temporarily hapless Kaua Santos.

What does this mean for the future of Bayern? The record champions decided to start the season with Kim and Upamecano. Neither has shown the quality this season that could be part of a winning formula in the current lineup. This means that Kompany will have to adjust his formation or the club will have to buy a central defender in the winter that fits his system.