FC Bayern Munich: Review of The Win Over Nuremberg and Of The Season So Far

Bayern went up to sixth in the table with a battering of Nuremberg. Aside from the result, one incident stood out. Javier Pinola spit on Bastian Schweinsteiger's head but later apologised. Schweinsteiger was nonetheless furious. On a more trivial note, Mario Gomez was pushed down to the bottom of the list of penalty takers with Schweini a spot above him due to his miss against Nuremberg.

FC Bayern 3-0 Nuremberg

Nuremberg seemed utterly lost from the moment they stepped onto the pitch. Daniel Pranjic and Andreas Ottl played a one-two with each other, Pranjic drove forward and sent a lovely ball into the box. Mario Gomez applied the finishing touch for 1-0.

In the second half, Bayern earned a penalty when Raphael Schaefer fouled Gomez in the box. Thankfully, the diminutive captain Philipp Lahm and not Gomez took the spot-kick for 2-0. Substitute Franck Ribery sent the ball into the box from a corner and Mario Gomez scored with a header for 3-0. Gomez had a shot at a hat-trick from the spot but skied the ball over the bar and into the crowd.

Mini Season Review

Following last season's incredible finish, Bayern fans were hoping for much of the same again. That seemed to be on the agenda as Bayern taught Schalke a footballing lesson in the Super-Cup, beating Felix Magath's side 2-0.

Nothing is sweeter for Bayern supporters than seeing Magath defeated. Prior to the beginning of the Bundesliga season, Bayern hammered Germania Windeck 4-0 in the German Cup. Toni Kroos and Mario Gomez both scored great goals in that game.

Even the league campaign was off to a good start as Bayern beat VfL Wolfsburg 2-1. However, everything started falling apart afterwards; a prolonged injury to Arjen Robben coupled with a loss to Kaiserslautern was the start of a long spell in the wilderness. Louis Van Gaal's stubbornness just made matters worse.

Two league draws followed. Bayern's Champions League campaign though started off well as they beat Roma 2-0. In their second game in Europe, they luckily beat Basel 2-1. Despite a 2-1 victory over Hoffenheim, the gaps were they for all to see.

The defence looked poor throughout their matches. Martin Demichelis was left rotting on the bench while Daniel Van Buyten was nothing more than a wooden plank at the back. He did score the late winner against Hoffenheim; however he was marginally offside.

Diego Contento after a promising start was error-prone at the back. Holger Badstuber's youthfulness and fear of tackling left only one good defender at the back: vice-captain, Philipp Lahm. The number of games that Lahm played though took a toll on him and the normally reliable full-back seemed to be somewhat lost.

Bayern lost to then league leaders, Mainz 2-1, despite being gifted an own-goal and was then beaten by Dortmund at the Allianz Arena. The injuries also started piling up. Mark Van Bommel, who hadn't been great anyways, Miroslav Klose who was suffering from a dose of "lack of balls from midfield", Franck Ribery, Ivica Olic and the aforementioned Contento all ended up injured.

Louis Van Gaal had no choice but to tinker with his system. Andreas Ottl, Hamit Altintop, Anatoliy Tymoschuk, Danijel Pranjic and Mario Gomez were all handed starting berths. Things were set right with a victory over Hanover and a very lucky victory over Cluj. Holger Badstuber then picked up an injury and Martin Demichelis was handed a lifeline.

Bayern hasn't looked back since then. This makeshift side has seen them go on an eight game unbeaten run. The tired Thomas Mueller has been given some bench time. The only problem at the moment is the horribly porous defence, especially Van Buyten. Breno returned this weekend and will perhaps become a starter.

The injuries are ceasing to exist with only Arjen Robben, Miro Klose, Olic and Badstuber on the sidelines. With the return of the four stars, things should only get better. Whether Bayern will make any purchases in the winter-break is questionable. Van Gaal has slowly gotten things right but Van Buyten simply cannot start.

Uli Hoeness made a statement in which he clearly urged Van Gaal to listen sometimes. As Felix Magath perhaps knows by now, all dictators have to listen at times as well. It is Van Gaal's stubbornness that has gotten Bayern to this position in the first place.

He was the one who didn't want any new signings during the summer, and he almost pushed the likes of current club top scorer Mario Gomez, the excellent Anatoliy Tymoschuk and Demichelis out of the club.

Next week, Leverkusen (and their legion of "lederhosen-wearing" fans) plays Bayern. Leverkusen is the second best team in the league now while Bayern has no other choice but to pick up more points to keep up with Dortmund. By next week, Van Gaal, with the exceptions of Robben and Olic, might have a full strength squad to choose from.

Best Players of the Club So Far: Bastian Schweinsteiger and Anatoliy Tymoschuk

Biggest Disappointment: The Frustrating Toni Kroos

Most Consistent Performer: Hans Joerg Butt and Schweinsteiger

Most Comical Performers: Mario Gomez and Edson Braafheid.

Worst Performer: Take Your Pick