Without four forwards or their head coach, FC Bayern München won 2–0 at Atlético de Madrid. Atlético marked Olise, Davies and Kane; Karl robbed Le Normand in his own box, and right-back Laimer, the free man all night, scored the second.
The numbers
| FC Bayern München | Atlético de Madrid | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 58% | 42% |
| Shots | 19 | 9 |
| xG | 1.77 | 0.83 |
| Touches in opposition box | 38 | 28 |
| Shots on target, first half | 0 | 0 |
Result the chances deserved: FC Bayern München 60% / 23% / Atlético de Madrid 17% (Poisson).
Starting line-ups
FC Bayern München (4-2-3-1): Neuer, Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanišić, Kimmich, Bischof, Olise, Karl, Davies, Kane.
Atlético de Madrid (4-4-2): Oblak, Pubill, Le Normand, Hancko, Grimaldo, G. Simeone, Llorente, Barrios, Baena, Álvarez, Sørloth.
Atlético subs: Lee Kang-in (59', Baena; FotMob's timeline has 57'), Koke (59', Le Normand), Lookman (59', Sørloth), Mendoza (75', Barrios), David (75', Álvarez). Simeone made the triple change straight after the opener (Goal). Hjulmand was suspended, so Llorente played in central midfield (Yahoo Sports); Johnny Cardoso was injured (FotMob). Lee Kang-in had 22 touches and FotMob rated him 5.9 (Starnews). Atlético coach: Diego Simeone.
Cards: Kimmich (57', delaying a free-kick), Giuliano Simeone (79'), Stanišić (90+1'); FC Bayern also list Pubill. Upamecano's header from a Kimmich corner at 82' was ruled out for his foul on Pubill (Goal). Attendance 70,813, a sell-out (FC Bayern).
Key moments, move by move
- Olise crosses from the right.
- The ball is half-cleared and Bischof shoots; it is blocked and runs loose to Le Normand in the box.
- Le Normand neither passes nor clears it. Karl nips in from behind and takes it off him.
- Karl beats Oblak, who has come off his line.
- Bayern win the ball back in Atlético's half.
- Laimer, the right-back, keeps running into the right side of the box. Nobody goes with him.
- Kane clips the ball into his path.
- From a tight angle Laimer fires high at the near post, in off the underside of the bar.
Atlético marked the front three, Bayern used the free men
- A team of whoever was fit. Saibari, Gnabry, Luis Díaz, Musiala and Ndiaye were injured (FotMob), and Kompany is still absent; Danks made five changes from the Dortmund draw, bringing in Neuer, Tah, Stanišić, Bischof and Karl (Bundesliga.com). Karl played between Olise on the right and Davies, normally a left-back, on the left.
- Atlético's plan. Simeone's 4-4-2 stayed tight on Olise, Davies and Kane (Bavarian Football Works). With Hjulmand suspended, Llorente played in central midfield (Yahoo Sports). Bayern had over 70% of the ball in the first 20 minutes without a shot (Bulinews), and neither side had a shot on target before half-time (beIN Sports, Opta).
- The free men decided it. Marking the forwards left Laimer and Upamecano free (Bavarian Football Works). Laimer crossed for two Kane chances and scored the second; Upamecano started Karl's first-half chance and had a deflected shot tipped onto the bar (Goal). UEFA and FotMob made Laimer player of the match.
- After the break. Sørloth said Atlético "tired after the break" (FC Bayern). Karl's goal came from Bayern's pressure in Atlético's own box, and Simeone changed three players at once. Over the match Bayern had 19 shots to 9 and 1.77 xG to 0.83 (FotMob), and Atlético had three shots on target (Goal). It was Bayern's first clean sheet in eight games (Goal).
Recreate it in FM26
FC Bayern München · Mark the front three, and the right-back scores · 4-2-3-1Show cardHide card
Mark the front three, and the right-back scores
| Pos | Player | In Possession | Out of Possession |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Neuer | Sweeper Keeper | Sweeper Keeper |
| RB | Laimer | Wing-Back | Pressing Full-Back |
| RCB | Upamecano | Advanced Centre-Back | Stopping Centre-Back |
| LCB | Tah | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Covering Centre-Back |
| LB | Stanišić | Full-Back | Holding Full-Back |
| RDM | Kimmich | Deep-Lying Playmaker | Defensive Midfielder |
| LDM | Bischof | Box-to-Box Midfielder | Pressing Defensive Midfielder |
| RW | Olise | Wide Playmaker | Winger |
| AM | Karl | Attacking Midfielder | Tracking Attacking Midfielder |
| LW | Davies | Winger | Tracking Winger |
| ST | Kane | Deep-Lying Forward | Centre Forward |
Team instructions
In Possession
- Attacking TransitionPatient Build-Up
- Progress ThroughRight
- Attacking WidthWider
- Shots from DistanceEncouraged
Out of Possession
- Line of EngagementHigh Press
- Defensive TransitionCounter-Press
- Trigger PressMore Often
The idea: Against a side that man-marks your front three, play patiently and let the spare men attack: a Wing-Back on the side of a Wide Playmaker and an Advanced Centre-Back who carries the ball. You need a right-back with the engine to arrive in the box late.
What FM26 can't copy: FM26 can't reproduce an opponent's centre-back freezing with the ball in his own box.
Our reading of this match in FM26 terms, not an exported tactic file. Role names as in FM26.
What if? Replay it with a different plan
Our best alternative plan: Pavlović on at 60' (for Kimmich), Brown on at 60' (for Davies). Keep the shape, the press and Laimer's runs; they won the game. The only change: Pavlović and Brown on around the hour, when Simeone changed three players, to spare the booked Kimmich and the marked-out Davies. It moves FC Bayern München's win chance from 60% to 64% (xG 1.77–0.83 becomes 1.87–0.73). Try your own changes to formation, pressing, approach and substitutions.
The game-changer FC Bayern München needed
Luis Díaz
Atlético stayed tight on Davies, who played on the left wing rather than his usual left-back, and he created no clear chance (Goal). A winger who beats a man one-on-one forces Pubill to double up, and opens more room for Laimer on the other side.
Jérémy Doku
Bavarian Football Works found Bayern slow, without a player who carries the ball at speed. Doku has completed 24 dribbles in five Premier League games this season (FotMob): the profile that breaks a 4-4-2 that marks man to man.
What the analysts said
“That was total domination from the first to the 93rd minute.”Manuel Neuer (FC Bayern website)
“No matter what Atlético threw at us, we always had an answer to it.”Manuel Neuer (FC Bayern website)
“It's a very deserved win here away to a good side.”Konrad Laimer (FC Bayern website)
“The way we kept a clean sheet and created chances in attack was impressive.”Aaron Danks, Bayern assistant coach (FC Bayern website)
“Dayot Upamecano's performances are often underestimated.”Aaron Danks (FC Bayern website)
“The first half was decent but we tired after the break.”Alexander Sørloth, Atlético (FC Bayern website)
“We played it the way we wanted, but the first goal came, and we didn't know how to react.”Diego Simeone, Atlético coach (beIN Sports)
“Liverpool and Bayern are better than us, we have to get closer to them.”Diego Simeone (beIN Sports)
Atlético marked Bayern's stars, so a right-back and an 18-year-old won it.
What's happening. Atlético 0–2 Bayern. Neither side had a shot on target before half-time. Then Karl robbed Le Normand in the box at 54', and Laimer scored from Kane's pass at 74'. Bayern were without four forwards and their head coach, kept their first clean sheet in eight games, and have eight points from four league-phase games.
How it works. A deep 4-4-2 that tracks the three forwards has to leave someone free, usually a full-back or a centre-back. Bayern kept the ball and waited. Laimer pushed up on the right as an extra attacker, and Upamecano carried the ball forward. The cost: with a full-back that high, a lost ball leaves space behind him. Atlético's best moments, Sørloth's chance around the half-hour and Llorente's run through at 66', came when they got the ball forward quickly.
What the shots say. By FotMob's numbers Bayern made about twice Atlético's chances, 19 shots to 9, and allowed less than one goal's worth. One reading: control without the injured forwards, and Atlético never got going. The other: many shots were from distance, the first goal was a defender's error, and Kane missed his chances, so this attack still leans on the opponent making mistakes.