Koln vs. Bayern Munich: Winners and Losers from Bundesliga Game
Bayern Munich extended their lead in the Bundesliga table to two points on Saturday as they beat Koln 2-0 at the RheinEnergieStadion.
Mario Gotze scored an early opener for the Bavarian giants before an own goal made it 2-0 and effectively ended the game as a competitive fixture mid-way through the second half.
The result left Koln 12th in the table but was a big boost for Bayern as they built on form that has markedly improved in the last few weeks. There were many positives that came from Saturday's match, especially from the visitors.
Click "Begin Slideshow" for a closer look at those who gained and lost the most.
Winner: Timo Horn
1 of 5
Although he's largely been under the radar until recently, Timo Horn has long been one of Germany's finest goalkeeping prospects. The fact that he has spent much of his professional career in the 2. Bundesliga and that he was unfortunate to have been born a year after Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Bernd Leno has kept him something of a hidden gem.
Horn has been in fantastic form in the early stages of his first professional season and, although beaten, came up big for Koln against Bayern. His reflex saves from Mario Gotze and Thomas Muller in particular during the first half were sensational.
Horn has a long way to go if he is to ever find his way into the German national team and may always be looked upon after the likes of Ter Stegen (who was signed by Barcelona over the summer) and Leno among young German goalkeeping prospects. But he deserves credit for his performance against Bayern and in previous games. He's certainly made up ground on his rivals and could soon be a big star.
Winner: Manuel Neuer
2 of 5
It can be difficult for a great goalkeeper to maintain his focus at a club where he rarely has much to do between the posts. It can become even tougher if the goalkeeper has just won the World Cup and may lack a touch of motivation. For Manuel Neuer, however, these foreseeable problems have not actually been a hindrance to his performance.
Koln lacked a lethal finisher and even a moderate amount of creativity going forward on Saturday, and Neuer for long periods had little to do.
There was a point, though, when he was absolutely needed to play at his very best: In the 34th minute and with Bayern still just one goal ahead, Adam Matuschyk and Anthony Ujah had clear scoring chances from point-blank range and in rapid succession.
Neuer brilliantly denied both; the fact that he was even off the ground to stop the second was a bit miraculous. Top marks to Neuer for keeping up the good form, even now.
Losers: Bayern's Center-Backs
3 of 5
Pep Guardiola fielded just one natural center-back on Saturday: Jerome Boateng started in defense ahead of Manuel Neuer. There were four natural full-backs in the first lineup, with Rafinha, Juan Bernat, David Alaba and Philipp Lahm all included in the team.
As a result of Pep Guardiola's selection, there was no room for any of Bayern's other center-backs, namely Mehdi Benatia and Dante. The pair came on as second-half substitutes, both being introduced in the 55th minute.
They had a good chance to show their qualities and took care of their responsibilities well enough, but the fact that they were not used from the start in a situation that would seem to be obvious to use them is rather ominous about Guardiola's plans for the club.
Winner: Xabi Alonso
4 of 5
Passes and touches may not be the things that win games on their own, but their statistics can be impressive nonetheless.
On Saturday, Xabi Alonso recorded an incredible 204 touches (per the Bundesliga's official live ticker), breaking Thiago Alcantara's previous Bundesliga record of 177. That equates to an average of 2.27 touches per minute, or one touch of the ball every 26.5 seconds Alonso also completed 175 of his 189 attempted passes.
Alonso's figures on the ball are evidence that even as he approaches his 33rd birthday, he still has something left in the tank. It requires willing legs and a sharp mind to be in a place to receive the ball so many times, let alone the technical ability to take it and complete so many passes. Very impressive indeed.
Winner: Mario Gotze
5 of 5
Mario Gotze scored the all-important opener for Bayern on Saturday, keeping up his fine run of form. He later played the final ball that led to Daniel Halfar scoring an own goal for Koln.
The 22-year-old Gotze has been incredibly important for Bayern in recent weeks, especially with Franck Ribery sidelined with injury. In fact, he's been directly involved in six of the club's last nine goals in all competitions, a testament to just how much Bayern rely upon him at this point.
Following his forgettable 2013-14 campaign, the scorer of the winner in the 2014 World Cup final seems to have finally found his feet in Munich.
