Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to TSG Hoffenheim dampened the mood a little, but the FC Bayern players, coaches and officials still visited the Oktoberfest on Sunday. The German record champions failed to extend their lead at the top of the table four days after the impressive Champions League victory away to Tottenham Hotspur.
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“We failed to use the good result and the euphoria from Tuesday for today’s match,” analysed coach Niko Kovač after the final whistle at the sold-out Allianz Arena. After the goalfest in Europe’s premier club competition, his team did not live up to the expectations in the bread and butter of the Bundesliga. The men from Munich left the pitch as losers for the first time in eight months, after 20 league matches without defeat.
Four points span the top ten teams
“Every streak comes to an end. It’s always annoying, no matter when it happens,” said Kovač. “It’s very annoying we lost today, especially as our rivals have dropped points,” commented sporting director Hasan Salihamidžić: “We just didn’t play well today.” Only four points span the table-toppers and Hertha Berlin in tenth place after seven matches.
Kovač was more or less satisfied with the goalless first half. “We had good moves and should have made more out of them, we should have been more determined.” His team failed to “convert our dominance in possession into very good chances.” In the second half Bayern “didn’t play well at all. We made too many mistakes and never put our opponents under pressure,” added Kovač.
New record for Lewandowski
Two-goal Sargis Adamyan fired TSG to their first-ever victory away to Munich. Goal-getter Robert Lewandowski levelled the scores in between, setting a new Bundesliga record of 11 goals after seven matches, but it was scant consolation: “I can’t be so glad when I’ve scored but we haven’t taken any points at the end of the day. It hurts. We have exactly the same number of points as last week. That’s not enough.”
After the first home defeat in one year, captain Manuel Neuer spoke of a “warning” because “we get nothing for free.” Salihamidžić said: “We must give it 100 or 110 percent in the Bundesliga, Saturday after Saturday. It’s a lesson for us.” The mood was “a little dampened” ahead of the traditional visit to the Oktoberfest, but on the other hand “it’s a team-building activity,” explained the sporting director. Bayern will take on FC Augsburg in an all-Bavaria derby after the international break. Kovač demanded: “We must set off on a winning run.”
