Bayern Munich vs. Roma: Lessons Learned from Champions League Game
Bayern Munich confirmed their progress to the knockout stage of the Champions League with a relatively comfortable 2-0 win over Roma.
The Serie A club were much improved from their 7-1 humiliation by the Bundesliga title holders a fortnight ago. Head coach Rudi Garcia made a number of changes that paid off in a far more disciplined showing.
Without much threat from their own attack, though, they could only hold on for so long. The Germans found their way past the Roma defence through Franck Ribery and Mario Gotze, whose goals sealed the win and top spot in Group E.
Read on for some lessons learned from Wednesday night's Champions League clash.
Robben Was Missed but Bayern Are Fine as Long as Ribery Shines
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"#Robben is out of today's game. He is suffering with a stomach bug and has stayed at the team hotel. Get well soon, Arjen! #FCBASR
— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) November 5, 2014"
Arjen Robben was arguably the star of Bayern Munich's 7-1 win over Roma in October.
Absent on Wednesday night, the Dutchman's extraordinary ability to dribble his way past even the best of defenders was missed. With him bombing in from the wing, the improved Giallorossi back line might have been breached more frequently than it ultimately was.
With that said, those who did start for Bayern did enough to earn the win.
Wide men Rafinha and Juan Bernat stretched the Serie A side frequently and remorselessly. Robert Lewandowski was a handful up front, while there was all manner of support from deeper central positions.
The man who—not for the first time in recent weeks—initiated arguably Bayern's best moments in the final third was Franck Ribery.
The Frenchman came off the bench in Rome to halt the home side's fightback (however futile it was at 5-1 down). And it was his intervention against Borussia Dortmund last weekend that turned the game back Bayern's way—first with the pass that led to Lewandowski equalising, then by winning a penalty through which Robben won the game.
As Bayern searched for the opener on this occasion, it was Ribery's determination that again made the difference.
After passing to David Alaba out left, Ribery charged into the box. Left unmarked by defenders who were distracted by Alaba and Lewandowski, the attacking midfielder was able to neatly sidefoot the Austrian's cross into the bottom corner.
Ribery remained someone Roma could now allow to go unchecked for the remainder of the game and was constantly probing for an opening. Bayern will want to have Robben available for the bigger tests to come in this competition, but as long as their French playmaker is around, they will have someone capable of shaping their attacks in the right way.
Rudi Garcia Recognised Roma's Limitations and Changed Accordingly
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After Bayern's first-half onslaught killed off Roma the last time the two sides met, the latter's head coach Rudi Garcia felt he let his team down.
"I am the first one who made the mistake, it is not the fault of the players, the first-half approach was my fault entirely," he told Sky Sport Italia, via Football Italia. "It was the wrong strategy, we should’ve been more closed up and try to hit them on the counter-attack."
Garcia went with that previously unused strategy this time around. The result was a far more respectable performance from his team, even if they were still a class apart.
"All the lads worked hard, as against Bayern Munich you need to be organised and defend well," Garcia said to Sport Mediaset, per Football Italia. "It was important to find a way of surprising them and we knew that we couldn’t beat them in terms of possession.
"Unfortunately, with their pressing, it’s tough to keep the ball for long and it’s a shame we didn’t make more of cross-field passes to go on the break."
While these moments were rare, Roma did occasionally threaten with the longer passes Garcia spoke of. Prior to turning his ankle on the half-hour (an incident that preceded Bayern stepping things up), Alessandro Florenzi showed a good eye for finding spaces in between Bayern's defence. The best of which was a pass from right to left that sent Radja Nainggolan into the box, only for the midfielder to disgracefully dive as Manuel Neuer got to him.
As Garcia also noted, though, just about every time Mattia Destro or Juan Iturbe got on the ball, they were quickly swallowed up by a sea of red and blue-striped shirts.
The Frenchman revealed the absence of players like Francesco Totti and Miralem Pjanic was partly "to ensure we have some fresh legs against Torino on Sunday." It was also an acknowledgement that his more free-spirited players were not going to be pragmatic enough to cause Bayern any real problems—save perhaps for the pacy Gervinho, who impressed off the bench.
"#Garcia: "We're still second after playing both matches against Bayern so our destiny is still in our own hands" #BayernRoma #FCBASR
— AS Roma (@OfficialASRoma) November 5, 2014"
Roma's Improved Defensive Showing Must Be Maintained
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It took a team-wide effort from Roma to keep Bayern Munich at bay as much as they did. That the Germans only managed two goals was in large part thanks to centre-back pairing Kostas Manolas and Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa.
The same two defenders were on the receiving end of a Bayern thrashing back home in October, while this past weekend they were culpable for Gonzalo Higuain's opener in the 2-0 loss to Napoli. They might have done more to stop the striker teeing up Jose Callejon for the Partenopei's second too.
With that in mind, they had to be much better to stop Roma suffering further embarrassment. Although caught out for both Bayern goals, they did up their game overall.
Both cleared their lines promptly and looked to occupy the pockets Lewandowski in particular tried to sneak into. Yanga-Mbiwa was especially alert to the Pole's threat, while he also stopped Gotze and Ribery from getting further on a couple of occasions.
Full-backs Jose Holebas and Vasilis Torosidis (and later substitute Ashley Cole) were worked hard on the flanks. Bayern were allowed to cross quite freely, but all three undoubtedly worked harder to try and stop them than they did during the 7-1 game.
This improved focus and work rate must be carried forward by the Roma defence. It might not be enough to stop Europe's best, but it could see them qualify for the knockout stages (they remain second in Group E) and would certainly aid their Serie A title push.
Neuer Is Deserving of Just as Much Praise as Any of His Team-Mates
4 of 4Neuer made some terrific saves in the Stadio Olimpico to ensure Bayern did not concede more than one. Back at the Allianz Arena, he was tested less often but made a save that once again highlighted his tremendous value.
With 83 minutes played, Gervinho and Cole combined superbly just inside the left side of the Bayern penalty area. The full-back rolled it back to his team-mate, who proceeded to skip past Lahm and get off a shot.
That was a decent enough stop, but what followed was even better. The ball came out to Nainggolan on the edge of the box, and he smashed it back towards goal. Just getting back to his feet from Gervinho's attempt, Neuer reacted remarkably to push it away from his net.
Bayern may well have held onto their lead even had Roma brought it back to 2-1. For a team with the ambition of dominating all before them, though, even a minor blow like that hurts.
Guardiola and his team clearly relish the notion of their superiority and the joy that comes with imposing it so stylishly. For that objective to be fully realised, they need to be excellent from back to front (as Guaridola's great Barcelona side was). With Neuer between the posts, they have a great chance of that.
"#Guardiola: "I'd like to congratulate my players. I never expected to qualify and win the group after four matches." #FCBASR
— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) November 5, 2014"
As Janusz Michallik and Ryan Bailey discussed for Bleacher Report earlier this week (see video above), Neuer's form has been so strong he could be a contender for the 2014 Ballon d'Or.
"When he does have to deal with things, he deals with them," Michallik said. "Great goalkeepers are great because when they are called upon they've got to make that save. If it's once a game or twice a game and he comes up good, that is all it takes."
That certainly describes the Germany No. 1 right now.
