How Barcelona Crushed Vincent Kompany – Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich (4-1)
It was not a football game, but a thriller. If this game could not keep you on the edge of your seat, I do not know what else could. Raphinha’s first goal, after just 57 seconds, provided the perfect jump scare start to this horror story that Vincent Kompany was going to see develop. Bayern Munich showed some fight, and for a few minutes in the first half, they looked dangerous. But their momentum faded, and Barcelona powered through to claim another three points in the Champions League.
So far Kompany has failed every proper test. They might smash their way in the Bundesliga, and demolish smaller teams with 9 goals as they did against Dinamo Zagreb, but when matched with a comparable team, Kompany has fallen short every time. A defeat against Unai Emery’s Aston Villa, a draw against probably the only domestic title challengers, Bayer Leverkusen, and a crushing defeat against Barcelona.
So let’s look at this game and see the main talking points!
Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich Stats
Manuel Neuer is Not in His Prime Anymore
Yes, I know, stating the obvious. But it is definitely an important talking point for this game. Bayern extended the goalkeeper’s contract until 2025, but they may want to reconsider it at the end of the season.
Neuer is definitely not to blame for Barcelona’s goals. Maybe he might have been able to stop one, but he was not responsible for Bayern’s poor defending. He nearly cost his team two more goals. In the 26th minute, he fumbled the ball near the goal and almost lost possession. He was fortunate the ball bounced off the pitch instead of into his own net. In the second half, at the 49 minute mark, he misplaced a poor pass that was intercepted easily and could have been another goal for Barcelona.
His performance earned him a 3/10 from the fans and analysts and I think it is deserved. He did not make any saves, and maybe that can be excused. But the poor ball distribution cannot be.
Barcelona’s High Defensive Line Was Brave
I truly admire Flick’s approach in this game. Barcelona kept a high defensive line, with their back four often sitting on the midfield line or just below it. A high defensive line requires aggressive pressing, because otherwise you just invite and give time and space for long passes in behind that line. And the few times Bayern Munich placed a long ball in behind, Inaki Pena was there to intercept it, catch it or clear it away.
Another important thing is the compactness. Although they remained high in the pitch, Barcelona’s shape was compact and disciplined in their approach. They did not give up space and did not leave gaps open to be exploited.
This compactness conceded the control in the wide areas, allowing players like Michael Olise and Serge Gnabry to exploit those spaces, but they did that with limited success. Bayern Munich had only 8 open play crosses throughout the entire game. Gnabry and Olise had three shots, and two of them were blocked, leaving the only shot on target to be Gnabry’s in the 17th minute.
Vincent Kompany Switches the Play
We discussed how playing long balls in behind the defensive line would be tough for Bayern. But there is another problem. Who would make those runs in behind? Harry Kane prefers to sit deeper, as his profile is very creative. And it showed in this game, where Kane dropped almost in line with the defenders. He is not the most athletic or fast striker, but he compensates plenty with his creativity and finishing.
So Kompany tried to bypass Barcelona’s high line with switches from side to side as he progressed the ball. After Raphinha’s opening goal, Bayern was playing really well, and switched constantly, trying to exploit the wide areas. Looking at Bayern’s first goal, disallowed by VAR, we see this pattern.
Kane drops deep and switches up the play on the right wing. Bayern progresses on the wing with Olise and Muller, taking advantage of the wide spaces left by Barcelona’s compact defense. Muller crosses it and Harry Kane heads it into the net. It was offside as Harry Kane was a few centimeters in front of the line.
At the second goal, which counted, we see this zig-zag pattern again. From the back, we are once more on the left wing, as we see a switch in play to the same Michael Olise on the right side of the pitch. Barcelona’s compact defense moves over to that side, leaving Serge Gnabry open on the left side. Olise switches up the play again to Gnabry. Then Gnabry crosses it for Harry Kane to put it into the net with a superb finish. So, left, right, left, cross and goal!
The big question is, why did Bayern Munich stop with this approach. It went really well for them for the 20 minutes they employed this, but after their second goal, the one that was actually valid, they stopped. And never bounced back as Barcelona crushed them harder and harder and they sank deeper and deeper into their lethargic attitude.
Raphinha Waits, And Smashes it In With The Same Pattern
Bayern was not the only team employing the diagonal pass. Barcelona did too, but with much more consistency and success. If we look at Raphinha’s last two goals, we see the same pattern. The visitors’ defense is crowded in one area of the pitch, trying to recover the ball, while Raphinha waits on the other side, with no opponent in sight.
It is a hard pass to make, especially when under pressure. But it is Barcelona we are talking about. For Lewandowski’s goal, it was much more straightforward, with a pass in behind the defensive line. But at Raphinha’s second goal, we saw the pattern of the diagonal pass. Bayern presses and the pass crosses the entire pitch to find Raphinha on the other side.
For the third goal, it is the same story. Only higher up, after Barcelona bypassed the first line of pressure. But it is still the same zig-zag pattern. From the left wing, we see a low pass from Pedri, to the right side, finding Lamine Yamal. Raphinha makes his run, and Yamal finds him with another diagonal. With two Bayern defenders trailing him, he finds the shot to the long post and gets the hat-trick.
Conclusions
Vincent Kompany fell short against Barcelona. Bayern had some good minutes in the first half, after Raphinha’s opening goal, but failed to replicate their success after Harry Kane equalized. Then Barcelona doubled their lead with Lewandowski’s scoring against his former team, followed by Raphinha completing his hat trick. Kompany’s substitutions did little to change the dynamic of the game, as his team conceded and played lethargically in the second half.
Hansi Flick’s confidence was admirable. He stuck with his high line, and did not park the bus, attacking and contesting Bayern with every chance. It was a well deserved win for Barcelona and one of the most entertaining games so far in the Champions League!
