VfB Stuttgart pressed and man-marked Kane, and levelled early in the second half. Kimmich answered within three minutes, and Saibari's two assists off the bench finished it.
The numbers
| FC Bayern München | VfB Stuttgart | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 59% | 41% |
| Shots | 21 | 11 |
| xG | 4.06 | 0.79 |
| Touches in opp. box | 49 | 17 |
Result the chances deserved: FC Bayern München 91% / 6% / VfB Stuttgart 3% (Poisson).
Starting line-ups
FC Bayern München (4-2-3-1): Neuer, Laimer, Upamecano, Kim Min-jae, Davies, Kimmich, Pavlović, Olise, Brown, Luis Díaz, Kane.
VfB Stuttgart (3-4-2-1): Bredlow, Jeltsch, Chabot, Hendriks, Vagnoman, Stiller, Prömel, Mittelstädt, Tomás, Undav, Pejčinović.
VfB Stuttgart subs: Demirović & Leweling (62', Pejčinović & Tomás), Stergiou & El Khannouss (74', Chabot & Undav), Andrés (88', Stiller). Stuttgart's 3-4-2-1 is as FotMob and FC Bayern list it, with Tomás and Undav behind Pejčinović.
Cards: Chabot (62'), Jeltsch (68'), Kim Min-jae (81'), Prömel (90+2').
Own goal: 58' on FotMob and Bundesliga.com, 57' in FC Bayern's report.
Kim Min-jae: 84 minutes at left centre-back next to Upamecano, his second competitive start of the season.
Key moments, move by move
- Kimmich whips in a corner.
- Upamecano gets a flick on at the near post.
- The ball squeezes through the bodies and into the far corner.
- Mittelstädt crosses from the left.
- Chabot gets on the end of it and Neuer makes a brilliant save.
- FC Bayern München can't clear, and after a couple of attempts the ball drops for Vagnoman.
- Vagnoman drives it home.
- Kimmich pounces on Stiller's clearance and holds off a challenge.
- He slips the ball through to Olise.
- Olise has far too much time and space, and tucks it past Bredlow.
- Kimmich plays a free kick out to Davies.
- Davies sends a low cross into the box.
- Vagnoman slips as he tries to clear and diverts it into his own net.
- Saibari gets into the box.
- He spins Jeltsch.
- He rolls the ball across the six-yard box.
- Pavlović sweeps it home.
- Saibari receives with his back to goal.
- He turns and slides Luis Díaz in behind.
- Luis Díaz is through on goal and fires it home.
VfB Stuttgart man-marked Kane. Kane took his marker with him.
- VfB Stuttgart's plan. An aggressive press and man-marking, with Chabot following Kane wherever he went (FC Bayern). Tomás hit the bar after nine minutes and Stuttgart had 0.79 xG, more than most of FC Bayern München's opponents so far this season.
- Kane as a decoy. Kane kept dropping deep to link play, and Chabot came with him, leaving space behind for Olise, Luis Díaz and Brown. Olise had a goal ruled out for a tight offside on 64' from exactly that pattern: Kane picked up a loose ball and slid it through.
- Kimmich decided it. He took the corner for the opener, won Stiller's clearance and slipped Olise through for the second, and started the free-kick move for the own goal. FotMob made him player of the match with an 8.9 rating.
- The weak spot. The equaliser came after a spell of VfB Stuttgart pressure, a cross and a scramble in which FC Bayern München failed to clear. FC Bayern's own analysis named two things to improve: finishing (21 shots, 9 on target, 6 big chances) and handling a high press.
Recreate it in FM26
FC Bayern München · Beating a man-marking press with a dropping Kane · 4-2-3-1Show cardHide card
Beating a man-marking press with a dropping Kane
| Pos | Player | In Possession | Out of Possession |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Neuer | Ball-Playing Goalkeeper | Sweeper Keeper |
| RB | Laimer | Full-Back | Pressing Full-Back |
| RCB | Upamecano | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Stopping Centre-Back |
| LCB | Kim Min-jae | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Covering Centre-Back |
| LB | Davies | Wing-Back | Full-Back |
| RDM | Kimmich | Deep-Lying Playmaker | Screening Defensive Midfielder |
| LDM | Pavlović | Box-to-Box Midfielder | Pressing Defensive Midfielder |
| RW | Olise | Inside Winger | Inside Outlet Winger |
| AM | Brown | Attacking Midfielder | Attacking Midfielder |
| LW | Luis Díaz | Inside Forward | Tracking Winger |
| ST | Kane | Deep-Lying Forward | Centre Forward |
Team instructions
In Possession
- Build-Up StrategyPlay Through Press
- Passing DirectnessBalanced
- TempoHigher
- Attacking WidthWider
- DribblingEncouraged
Out of Possession
- Line of EngagementHigh Press
- Trigger PressMore Often
- Defensive TransitionCounter-Press
The idea: Kane as a Deep-Lying Forward drags the opposing centre-back out, and the inside wingers run into the space he leaves. You need a striker with high Passing and Composure, a Deep-Lying Playmaker who spots the through ball, and wingers with Pace and Off the Ball.
What FM26 can't copy: FM26's man-marking AI rarely follows a striker as far as Chabot followed Kane, so the space behind will open less often than it did here.
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: Saibari on at 46' not 61' (for Brown). The plan worked, so change one thing: Saibari at half-time instead of 61'. His ability to turn his marker is the best answer to man-marking, and could have added to FC Bayern München's 1–0 half-time lead before the equaliser on 52'. It moves FC Bayern München's win chance from 91% to 92% (xG 4.06–0.79 becomes 4.21–0.79). Try your own changes to formation, pressing, approach and substitutions.
The game-changer FC Bayern München needed
Tom Bischof
VfB Stuttgart pressed man-to-man, and the equaliser came from a spell in which FC Bayern München couldn't get out. Bischof receives on the half-turn and shoots from distance, so he gives the press a problem it can't solve by marking: take the ball under pressure and hit it from 20 metres.
Declan Rice
VfB Stuttgart's goal came from a cross, a save and a scramble in which nobody cleared the second ball. Rice is strong in the air, wins loose balls in his own box and carries the ball out of a press. He covers both of the weaknesses FC Bayern's own analysis pointed to.
What the analysts said
“Bayern just take their chances. I think if Fabi Bredlow hadn't had such a good day, we could've conceded eight or nine.”Deniz Undav, Stuttgart captain (FC Bayern website)
“We'll try to keep going with what we've been doing in recent years, playing with lot of energy, endeavour and obviously always scoring goals.”Vincent Kompany (FC Bayern website)
“Conceding always annoys you, but you can't prevent every situation so easily against a good team like Stuttgart.”Manuel Neuer (FC Bayern website)
“We just keep going, don't stop and score our goals.”Aleksandar Pavlović (FC Bayern website)
The best thing about this win was the three minutes after the equaliser.
What's happening. Bayern beat Stuttgart 5–1 on the opening night. Stuttgart pressed, man-marked Kane and equalised early in the second half. Kimmich answered within three minutes, and Saibari made two goals off the bench.
How it works. Stuttgart man-marked, so Bayern's free player had to come from somewhere else. Kane made one by dropping deep and dragging his centre-back out of the line; Kimmich used the space. Saibari's two assists both came from turning past a marker. Against man-marking, a player who can spin his man is worth more than a clever passer.
What the shots say. Replaying every shot, Bayern win nine times in ten, and they scored four of six big chances. Five goals was roughly what the chances deserved. Stuttgart's equaliser came from a lapse under pressure, the one moment their press worked.