Matchday 14 was not kind to Bayern Munich, or perhaps more accurately, Bayern Munich was not kind to itself. A lethargic performance overall, many of the team’s players looked uninterested in being on the pitch. Senior members of the squad such as Joshua Kimmich, Leroy Sané, and Kim Min-jae were all a cut below the levels required of them and countless others were misplacing their passes throughout the night.
Not ones to pass up a golden opportunity to earn three points, Mainz pounced, using their confidence and ferocity to go head-to-head against the best team in Germany. Captured via the FC Bayern Munich website, Mainz defender Stefan Bell spoke after the match, saying, “It felt really good to be able to celebrate a win and feel that it was deserved. Bayern started better. We reacted tactically during the first half and then became more confident. Then it was a game on equal terms and we took the lead in a good phase.”
In contrast to the confidence Bell spoke about Mainz bringing to this match, it was a very different story when the two teams met in the DFB Pokal. Mainz sporting director, Niko Bungert spoke about his side’s change in fortunes, saying, “In contrast to the cup game, it was definitely a completely different team. A team that has developed incredible self-confidence in the last few weeks. We took the right steps. The team and the coaching staff did a great job. We built up a completely different level of sovereignty and brought more and more quality onto the pitch. That was the icing on the cake today, to win against a team like Bayern Munich in the end. The team is simply stable at the moment and can also compensate for losses.”
It was a night to remember for Mainz, but hopefully, Bayern is able to put it behind itself and find form for its upcoming clash with RB Leipzig.
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