Bayern Munich's Kingsley Coman Comes of Age Ahead of Meeting with Juventus

Pep Guardiola opted to rest many of his star players on Saturday as Bayern Munich faced Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga. The reason for the decision was obvious, with the league leaders set to take on Juventus in the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie on Wednesday.

And yet, Bayern hardly looked to have a team of reserves on the pitch as they were 5-0 winners against a Bremen side that were simply outclassed.

A big reason for the Bavarians' success was Kingsley Coman, who put on a master class on the wing, providing three assists. He was the best player on the pitch and dared to play a leading role. This was despite the fact that he appeared alongside former European Footballer of the Year Franck Ribery and World Cup winner Mario Gotze in the Bayern attacking midfield.

Coman's productivity wasn't just the typical example of a player coming to life and nabbing man of the match honors with a late hat-trick after the game was over. He played a perfect cross to Thiago Alcantara for the opener then set up Thomas Muller for Bayern's second after showing a quick turn of pace to run to the byline before crossing. Only his final assist, another example of great pace and control, came after the result was decided; it was for Thiago's late strike to make it 5-0.

That a 19-year-old took on such a leadership role amid a slew of other qualified playmakers speaks well for his confidence. And Guardiola made a good point in highlighting how Coman was able to immediately turn on a switch and perform. After the match, the trainer said (via Deutsche Welle): "He [Coman] is a great guy. He was in the stands against Dortmund and now 3 assists today. It just shows his quality."

The three assists were Coman's eighth, ninth and 10th of the campaign in all competitions, to go along with his five goals. Saturday marked the first time he's directly been involved in more than two goals in a single game, and just the fourth time he played a hand in more than one.

For Coman, his hat trick of assists could not have come at a better time. Juventus are still his parent club, although the fact that he is on loan now looks to be a formality: Bayern revealed with his signing in August that they had negotiated an option to sign the player on a full transfer after his loan ends next summer. And with Tancredi Palmeri having reported on his Twitter account that the transfer fee will be €20 million, it's hard to see the Bavarians not paying to sign the player on a permanent basis.

Juve, it seems, underestimated Coman before letting him leave. And the player will be keen to show the Italian giants exactly what they're missing out on. He was benched for the full 90 minutes in the first leg, and perhaps Guardiola had intended to have him sit out the second leg as well. It will be a tough test for Bayern, who despite having earned a favorable, 2-2 draw in Turin will enter the return leg knowing the tie rests on a knife's edge.

Yet following his match-winning performance on Saturday, it will be hard to ignore Coman. He's shown that in spite of his age and relative inexperience, he's willing to rise above even established superstars and deliver as his team needs. Maybe Guardiola thought he'd sit out on Wednesday, but after his performance against Bremen, Coman surely has earned the right to play a part in the match against his parent club.

@Mr_Bundesliga