54' · Bayern Karl 0–1 Won the ball in the box, lifted it over Oblak | 74' · Bayern Laimer 0–2 Kane's pass, in off the bar from a tight angle | Champions League Bayern 8 pts Two wins, two draws from four games | Goals conceded Bayern 0 First clean sheet since 18 September |
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| 01 The Big Take |
| We asked who would run into the space Kane left. The answer was Karl and Laimer. |
| Bayern went to Madrid without Musiala, Díaz, Gnabry and Saibari, with Olise carrying a knee problem and Danks in charge for Kompany. They faced a side that had let in three goals in nine games. They won 2–0 and could have had more. |
| The goals both came from midfielders arriving in the box. On 54 minutes Bischof's shot wasn't cleared, Karl took the ball off Le Normand and lifted it over Oblak. On 74, Kane drifted a pass into Laimer's path and Laimer hit it in off the crossbar from a tight angle. |
| Bayern have now beaten Atlético on their own ground for the first time. Their previous three visits ended in two 1–0 defeats in 2016 and a 1–1 in 2020. And our best wishes go to Kompany again: his team did him proud. |
| Bayern's first clean sheet in eight games came against the best defence they've faced all season. |
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| Goal details from Bundesliga.com, Yahoo Sports (AFP) and Sportsdunia. Reports differ slightly on Karl's goal: some say he won the ball from Le Normand, Bundesliga.com describes a poor block. Laimer's goal is listed at 74' by Bundesliga.com and 73' by FCBinside. |
| 02 The Tactical Take |
| How Bayern broke the block |
| 1 · Davies as a winger |
| With the forwards out, Danks pushed Davies to the left wing alongside Olise and Karl behind Kane. Davies's pace gave Atlético's right side something to think about, and Kim replaced him late on. |
| 2 · Midfielders in the box |
| Bischof, Kimmich and Laimer all got shots away. Both goals came from midfield runners, not the front line. Against a 4-4-2 that sits deep, runners from behind are hard to track. |
| 3 · Pressing high |
| FCBinside describes Laimer's goal as starting from a high turnover. The first goal came from Le Normand being caught on the ball. Atlético were made to defend in their own box. |
| 4 · No late wobble |
| Atlético made a triple change on 59 minutes and chased the game. Bayern didn't sit back. FCBinside notes there was no big final push from Atlético because Bayern kept working without the ball. |
| Pavlović started on the bench; Danks said no risk was taken with him. Brown came on for Karl and forced a late save from Oblak. |
| 03 The Numbers |
1st Bayern's first ever win away at Atlético. After 1–0 defeats in 2016 (twice) and a 1–1 in 2020. The 1974 final was in Brussels. |
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0 Goals Bayern conceded. Their first clean sheet since 7–0 against Union Berlin on 18 September. |
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9 Games Atlético had gone unbeaten before tonight. It was also their first home defeat of the season. |
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8 Bayern's points from four games. Up from five. Yahoo Sports (AFP) has them eighth after Tuesday's games. |
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| 04 Our Preview, Marked |
Holding ourselves to account What we got right, and what we got wrong Right We said Kane would drop deep and "the question is who runs into the space he leaves". Karl and Laimer did, and Kane assisted the second. We asked whether Olise should start: he did. Wrong We worried about the last ten minutes. Bayern were never in danger late. And we expected Atlético's block to be very hard to break. Bayern had the better chances in both halves. |
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| 05 The Counterargument |
| Maybe Atlético were off |
| — They were missing key players. Previews had Hjulmand suspended, and AFP reports Atlético lost a player to a late injury on matchday. |
| — It could have been different early. Álvarez had a shot flash just wide inside three minutes. |
| — One game doesn't fix the defending. Bayern conceded in seven straight before this. Mainz on Saturday will show whether the clean sheet is a pattern or a one-off. |
| 06 What It Means |
| Three things to carry into Mainz |
1 | The table. Eight points and back in the top eight after Tuesday's games, with four league-phase games left. |
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2 | Karl. Started, scored, and was involved in Bayern's best first-half chance. With so many forwards out, he's become a starter. |
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3 | Neuer is back. A clean sheet on his return after missing four games with a foot problem. |
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| Kane didn't score, so he missed the chance to equal Cristiano Ronaldo's record of scoring in 11 straight Champions League games, according to AFP. Kimmich and Stanišić were booked. |
The B90 Question Karl or Laimer: whose goal mattered more in Madrid? Tell us on X @Beyond90Bayern. We'll pick up the best answers in the Mainz preview. |
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Next: Mainz v Bayern
Bundesliga · Matchday 9
Sat 7 Nov · 14:30 UK |
| Sources: Bundesliga.com: match report · Yahoo Sports (AFP): report · FCBinside: report · Sportsdunia: player ratings · beIN Sports: preview · GoalIQ: results · Results and table: GoalIQ |
BEYOND 90 Bayern Munich, beyond the scoreline. Tactical insight. Honest analysis. Opinions you won't get from the usual coverage. An independent publication. Not affiliated with or endorsed by FC Bayern München. |
