Lyon Proved That Bayern Munich Are No longer Untouchable Before PSG Clash

Memphis Depay, Joshua Kimmich
Memphis missed a mammoth chance early within the first half of | Pool/Getty Photography

There are, hear me out here, ways to beat Bayern Munich.

No, I assemble now now not mean giving them all food poisoning. No, I assemble now now not mean nicking their boots sooner than kick off. In actuality, this seemingly very unlikely process is in most cases that you might perchance well presumably perchance presumably imagine.

It is possible you’ll presumably want every thing to hurry your advance and 10/10 performances all the device thru the board, nonetheless if Lyon showed us anything else on Wednesday evening, or now now not it is that Die Roten might perchance also be bought at.

It is PSG vs Bayern Munich within the Champions League final! ? pic.twitter.com/MmSBEWKT3y

— 90min (@90min_Football) August 19, 2020

What we saw within the outdated spherical towards Barcelona turned into as soon as a painfully inept game plot from the Spanish aspect that screamed ‘beat me’. What we saw from Lyon turned into as soon as rather the opposite, as no matter the defeat, the French giants etched out the blueprint for the advance to beat Bayern – and here it is:

Hans-Dieter Flick’s aspect are looking out to, in no lesser terms, dominate soccer suits. That does now now not mean bully the opposition off of the ball. Straightforward and merely, they want possession. All of it.

So, taking a leaf out of Barça’s book, don’t play a flat four in midfield. You’re stood in no man’s land. It is pointless. Flood your assault and vast areas with tempo. Appears straightforward, on narrative of it is.

Can possess to you assemble advance up towards the Bavarians, the transitions when you turn the ball over are key. That you might perchance well moreover possess essentially win it first, of course, nonetheless provided that they play such an astronomically high line, exploiting these gaps both aspect of the centre-backs is the place you might perchance well presumably perchance presumably assemble the most anxiousness. Effectively, Die Roten wish to shrink the pitch into a single half of.

Doing that is enticing if the players you might perchance well presumably perchance presumably be facing can now now not assemble. Y’know, like Lyon.

That might perchance presumably perchance be a foul ploy, on the different hand.

? Depay goes shut inside of 4 minutes…#UCL pic.twitter.com/23eLqbqq8r

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 19, 2020

As we saw within the opening complaints on Wednesday, Lyon possess been tearing Bayern to shreds. With fire in their bellies they utilised a medium press that caught their opponents off guard in midfield, with the ahead pair anxiously anticipating the turnovers to change on the afterburners.

Even though it supposed Memphis Depay losing into the central hole to double up on Leon Goretzka and Thiago, they uncovered the areas of weak point in Flick’s aspect and set about exploiting them.

Alphonso Davies, for all his brilliance, almost plays as a left-winger. Bayern possess such self belief in their own talents that this would now not effort them. Because it shouldn’t – they boast famend ball retention all the device thru their starting lineup. But you might perchance well presumably perchance presumably now now not succor the ball with out a kill in sight. You unbiased can now now not. No longer in a Champions League final, on the least.

Within the case of Lyon, Depay stared down on David Alaba in central defence, colorful he drifts some distance other than his opposite centre-support. As soon because the initial press is broken, that home is there to be crawl into. Alaba is now not any paddle, nonetheless Jerome Boateng has lost just a few yards of tempo. After him Niklas Sule is hardly ever Like a flash Gonzales neither.

Memphis Depay, Jerome Boateng
Depay had a good deal of enjoyment towards Boateng within the opening minutes | Pool/Getty Photography

They bought away with it on this occasion…successfully, many occasions on Wednesday…nonetheless you might perchance well presumably perchance presumably most efficient hope for Die Roten that they’ve learnt their lesson after tonight. Kylian Mbappe, human crawl jet, might perchance presumably moreover now now not establish any prisoners. Nor will Neymar, for that matter. He can now now not spurn opportunities three video games in a row. Absolutely now now not.

Bayern will be ripped to objects by Paris Saint-Germain if they persist on taking part in their defence so some distance ahead. Making a (very) tough estimate, the backline needs to fall support on the least five yards. Offering these gaps for two of the actual players on the earth to waltz into is footballing suicide. They’ll concede targets, and a good deal of them.

What we can hope for, with a obvious diploma of self belief, is that Sunday’s showpiece will be BRILLIANT.

Sure, there are now now not any followers and that sucks, nonetheless when turned into as soon as the final time a Champions League final bought the pulses racing rather like this one? Mbappe, Neymar, Di Maria, Lewandowski, Gnabry, Thiago, Muller.

Sunday can now now not advance sooner.

For more from Ross Kennerley, follow him on Twitter!

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