Frans Kratzig scored the winner for Bayern Munich against Liverpool in a thoroughly entertaining pre-season friendly in Singapore on Wednesday.
Goals from Cody Gakpo and Virgil van Dijk had given Liverpool an early 2-0 lead before Serge Gnabry and Leroy Sane made it 2-2 before half-time. The Reds re-took the lead through Luis Diaz in the second 45, but late goals from Josip Stanisic and Kratzig earned the win for Bayern.
Inside the opening two minutes, Liverpool cut Bayern Munich’s new look defence open with a sharp one-two between Gakpo and Diogo Jota. The latter played through Gakpo with a lovely first-touch pass and, after rushing into the penalty area, the Netherlands international coolly swept the ball into the net.
Bayern reacted well to going behind, causing Liverpool’s backline a number of problems thereafter. One problem from a corner kick culminated in Gnabry hitting the crossbar with a header, before Benjamin Pavard ballooned a follow-up effort high and wide.
The Bavarians were made to rue those missed chances by Van Dijk in the 28th minute. The new club captain rose highest from an Andy Robertson corner to thunder home a header to make it 2-0.
Thomas Tuchel’s side found a route back into the game soon after, racing in behind an asleep Trent Alexander-Arnold before cutting in-field and curling past Alisson.
Soon after, it was 2-2. Gnabry once again exploited the space in behind Alexander-Arnold to burst into the Liverpool box, before squaring to Sane who was able to tap home with ease.
Despite being thoroughly outplayed for most of the second half, it’d be Liverpool who’d take the lead once again after the hour mark. Substitute Diaz was brilliantly found by Mohamed Salah in the box with an outside of the foot pass and, after flicking the ball past Pavard, the new number seven fired the ball into the bottom corner.
Bayern would once again find a route back into the game on the quarter of an hour mark through Stanisic. The substitute reacted quickest in the box to tap home the ball after Matthijs de Ligt saw a header be parried by Alisson.
Five minutes later, Darwin Nunez missed a glorious chance to win the game for Liverpool. Squared the ball by Salah, from six yards out the new number nine failed to fire the ball past Sven Ulreich, who was on hand to smother Nunez’s incredibly tame effort.
The Bavarians then bagged a deserved winner through youngster Kratzig. The 20-year-old burst through on goal down the left to latch onto a chipped through ball, and after taking a touch, was subsequently able to fire the ball into the top left corner of the net. A stunning goal to win a thoroughly entertaining pre-season friendly.
On paper, Liverpool’s midfield looked thoroughly exciting from an attacking sense, and thoroughly worrying from a defensive sense.
And while Alexis Mac Allister and co did put the hard yards in, the lack of deep cover in midfield ultimately hurt the Reds. Conceding 10 goals in four pre-season games tells you why they’re so keen to sign a new defensive midfielder before the start of the season.
Although Darwin Nunez was given the number nine this summer, Cody Gakpo simply has to be Liverpool’s starting striker heading into the 2023/24 season.
The Netherlands international is as close to a like-for-like replacement for Roberto Firmino in a false nine role due to his ability to drop deep and command possession, and his ability to run in behind defences isn’t too bad either – as showcased with his goal in the second minute.
Is Trent Alexander-Arnold a midfielder or a right-back?
That’s been one of the key questions that Jurgen Klopp needs to answer heading into the new season.
Judging by the performance he put in as a right-back against Bayern Munich, the answer to that question is: he is a midfielder.
The England international was caught out for both of Bayern’s first half goals, and you’d expect Premier League opposition to exploit his defensive weaknesses at full-back during the 2023/24 campaign too.
As showcased on Wednesday, Bayern are very, very good football team.
In order to become a great team, capable of winning the Champions League, though they need to sign Harry Kane.
The Bavarians do so much so well in and around the penalty area and, if they have a deadly number nine to finish off the countless chances that the likes of Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala create, then they will challenge Man City for European supremacy during the 2023/24 campaign.
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