For Thomas Tuchel it was pure satisfaction, for his critics it was another great assist. The Bayern coach’s thin-skinned statements following the 4-0 (2-0) win in the prestigious duel at Borussia Dortmund made Bayern’s renewed demonstration of power a marginal aspect.
Snapped, the 50-year-old reacted with biting irony at his old place of work to the criticism that had previously arisen about the cup disaster in Saarbrücken and thus made himself the biggest topic. “It looked okay for no further development and a bad internal relationship between coach and team. You can find out the rest from the experts,” said Tuchel after the lesson for the old rival, who is currently no longer one.
Dealt with critics
But that was no longer of interest in the retrospective of the game. Tuchel had set the discourse in countless statements, all of which had only one purpose: to work on the critics and TV experts Dietmar Hamann and Lothar Matthäus. Instead of quietly enjoying the game, which could easily have ended 7-0, and letting the performance of his team, which was superior in all areas, speak for itself, Tuchel had, among other things, canceled a Sky interview in the presence of the astonished Matthäus.
The German record international player Matthäus and Hamann had criticized Bayern in some cases in recent weeks and said that Munich’s game had not developed further under Tuchel. Even before the victory, Tuchel had reacted irritably to the 1:2 in the cup at third division club 1. FC Saarbrücken. “We won 4-0, now you have to do a 180 degree turnaround, have fun,” said Tuchel on the Sky microphone after the game.
No gin and tonic with Matthew
The Bayern coach is not interested in a private discussion. “I have enough to do in my job,” said Tuchel on Bild TV. He usually doesn’t have private meetings with television experts. When asked whether he would drink a gin and tonic with Matthäus again, the Munich coach said: “I don’t drink alcohol during the season.”
The criticism of Tuchel continued on Sunday morning. Despite the impressive performance in Dortmund, former Bayern champion coach Felix Magath agreed with Matthäus and Hamann. “I am also of the opinion that things are not going well yet,” said the 70-year-old on Bild TV. “You don’t get the impression that the team is stable yet.”
Magath: “Probably not an easy season”
Bayern expert Magath also said that Tuchel had treaded on thin ice with his thin skin. “Actually, there’s nothing going on in the league yet. FC Bayern only had a terrible cup day. As a coach, you also have to take criticism,” said Magath. “I don’t see any indecent criticism yet. If the coach is already reacting so sensitively, it probably won’t be an easy season.”
This means that Bayern have once again managed to ensure that, even if they are successful, almost only their inner workings are talked about. Just like in May, when the record champions wrested the championship from BVB on the last match day, but this was almost overshadowed by the separation from then-CEO Oliver Kahn and ex-sports director Hasan Salihamidzic.
The 4-0 win on Saturday had the potential to bring calm for the time being and focus on more positive topics. The game was like a statement – as so often happens when Bayern are struggling. The record champions left behind Dortmund, who were pitifully inferior on Saturday, with a lead of five points. Bayern are likely to face league leaders Bayer Leverkusen in their new title duel this season.
“We kept up with Leverkusen”
“We kept up with Leverkusen,” said a relieved Bayern attacker Thomas Müller. Thanks to the sweeping victory, the Munich team remains within striking distance, two points behind the Rhinelanders. For the 2014 world champion in particular, the prestigious victory seemed to be a balm for the cup disgrace. “That was a pleasure,” said Müller about the quick 2-0 lead after less than ten minutes.
But in the end this was lost almost as much as another hat-trick from Harry Kane, who, with 15 goals from ten players, eclipses even Erling Haaland’s quota in the Premier League (11 goals in eleven games) and is the outstanding goalscorer in Europe’s top leagues is. “He has to slowly change hotel rooms or find a house that is suitable for him to be able to store the hat-trick balls well,” joked Müller about the Englishman’s accuracy, which, like in the 8-0 win against newly promoted Darmstadt the previous week took home the game ball after another three goals.
