Bayern Munich started off 2025/26 on a strong note with emphatic performances in the preseason. Following that, in the season proper, they secured a fantastic Supercup win against VfB Stuttgart, the Pokal winners from 2024/25. Most recently, in the Bundesliga opening fixture at home, they had a magical 6-0 win against RB Leipzig. With all this in place, one might have assumed they were set for the season — trophies galore.
Bayern faced SV Wehen Wiesbaden from the 3. Liga in the first round of the DFB-Pokal. What was slated to be an easy win, instead turned out to be a nightmare for Bavarians as they were torn apart by beautiful attacking movements and relentless defending. Somehow, the Bavarians coasted through this nightmare with a 3-2 win, qualifying for the second round. Here are the observations from the game.
Tactics? Never heard of her!
The title is an exaggeration, but no smoke without a flame, you know?
It is clear that Vincent Kompany is still on the lookout for a player to start weekly in the attacking midfield position — last week, it was Serge Gnabry and this week it is Lennart Karl. The current #42 was great, but not close to what he put up a few games ago. However, Julian Nagelsmann, who was in the stands, seemed satisfied enough with the young attacker.
As it has been lately, Kane continues to play deep, Kimmich continues to drop into the backline, but what was particular to this game was how awful they looked in buildup. Players seemed to be all over the place, unable to lose their marker and mostly just looked very lost and uncoordinated. There is seemingly no formation in buildup. More often than not, in the final third, there is no one who is in a scoring position — they are either too far from scoring range or are right in front of a hungry Wiesbaden player.
It is back to the drawing board for Kompany, who needs to figure out a better passing strategy and his tactics on the overall.
The players who made this (not) happen.
As difficult as it is to point to Harry Kane, it is obvious that a seasoned striker cannot afford to miss that many shots, and worse yet, a penalty. However, everyone has bad games and perhaps this just was not his night. He still managed to secure a brace and is perhaps the only reason Bayern were not ousted this night.
Aleksander Pavlović. The word underwhelming loses all meaning when one tries to describe just how poor he was this game. His passing was all over the place and that is extremely bad news for a guy whose job is 50% passing related. The return from injury has not been smooth for him, and this performance will see him retreat to the bench.
Raphael Guerriero looked slow and jarringly disconnected from the game, while Sacha Boey looked promising sometimes but balanced it out with a few poor decisions. However, the worst of the lot was Jonathan Tah, whose every single decision came a second too late. His marking was utterly shambolic, and he was clearly responsible for the opposition’s dominance and for the two goals conceded.
Finally, Jonas Urbig. This is certainly a night to forget for the young goalkeeper. The otherwise solid deputy to Manuel Neuer had one of his worst Bayern games, conceding twice and not having saved a single shot on target.
Okay, as much as it looks like I have simply been bashing the players, it unfortunately was just that kind of game! Wiesbaden was clearly inspired by the likes of Saarbrucken and Arminia Bielefeld and decided the tides could turn in their favour. Bayern looked uninspired, with hardly anything to call a final third, and most importantly, there were too many players offering too little to salvage what they had. The refereeing was an utter joke and the absence of VAR enabled the Wiesbaden players to play dirty without worry of consequences.
However, the positives. The two non-penalty goals scored were absolutely terrific. Lennart Karl in the 50th minute managed to set up a fantastic goal, making an incredible run into the box. Sacha Boey, who received the ball, missed his shot, but the ball was quickly retrieved by Michael Olise who coolly finished in the bottom right, making it 2-0. The last-minute goal from Kane was the result of a beautiful cross from the left by Josip Stanišić (after he’d received the ball from Gnabry). Kane quickly headed the ball into the night, past the two defenders in front of him and the goalkeeper. This is what redemption looks like.
The positives do not take away from the jarringly clear issues the team has, and they need to find a solution at the earliest. The tactics need to be reviewed, and players should start playing with a bit more seriousness. It is clear no team in the Pokal will be ready to give Bayern an easy win and the Rekordmeister must be prepared to put up a fight if they want to secure Pokal #21.
Bayern Munich traveled to Frankfurt to take on SV Wehen Wiesbaden in the DFB-Pokal.
The home side was game and did give Bayern Munich a battle. Sure, the Bavarians were deeper, quicker, stronger, and better, but the 3.Liga side was not going to go down easy in what was an entertaining match. Bayern Munich ultimately won 3-2.
Let’s dive into it, this is what we have on tap for episode of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Postgame Show:
A look at the starting XI.Some fans are going to bemoan this match.Some admiration for SV Wehen Wiesbaden goalkeeper Florian Stritzel.A rundown of the scoring and substitutions.Some final thoughts and takeaways on the match.Support Bavarian Podcast Works on Patreon!
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