Bayern Munich secured their second league win of the season under Carlo Ancelotti, albeit in unconvincing fashion as Schalke ensured that the reigning Bundesliga champions had to work extremely hard to get the three points.
After a series of chances at both ends of the field, Bayern Munich finally opened the scoring in the 81st minute courtesy of Robert Lewandowski's neat finish from Javi Martinez’s perfectly weighted through ball, before the Pole turned provider and assisted Joshua Kimmich’s goal – his first in Bundesliga – in injury time to secure the win for his side.
Here are the major talking points from Bayern Munich’s 2-0 win over Schalke:
#1 Renato Sanches is far from a finished product
The Portuguese sensation, fresh from helping his country lift the Euros, made his debut for the Bavarians at the Veltins-Arena but failed to shine. Sanches was afforded an extended break following his exploits at the European Championship, however, having fully recovered he was started ahead of Arturo Vidal – who was not risked due to a minor knock.
The 19-year-old slotted in well alongside Xabi Alonso and Thiago Alcantara but lacked the panache associated with a world class midfielder. He was anonymous for most parts of the game and the only relevant contribution he made was getting booked in the 71st minute for a professional foul on Leon Goretzka, before being eventually substituted by Kimmich.
Although it is not difficult to look average in a Bayern Munich side, considering the abundance of talent at their disposal and with age on his side, Sanches will certainly improve to become a world-beater.
#2 Robert Lewandowski
Robert Lewandowski might not be the best striker in the world currently, but he is not far from being a close second. The Pole opened the scoring for his side and has now notched 4 goals in his opening two league games of the season – following the sensational hat-trick against Werder Bremen in the first game of the season.
The Pole failed to convert two chances, which can be deemed easy by his standards, as the game looked to be heading towards a draw, but a perfectly threaded through ball saw Lewandowski burst clear and he wouldn’t miss it a third time.
Following the opening day hat trick, Lewandowski was involved in a friendly twitter banter with Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – who had racked up two goals on the opening weekend – and the race between the two for finishing as the top goalscorer in Bundesliga will be an exciting an eventful one.
#3 Markus Weinzierl needs a win
Markus Weinzierl was appointed as the manager of Schalke in June to replace Roberto Di Matteo, who had failed to help Die Königsblauen qualify for the UEFA Champions League by virtue of a top-four finish. Weinzierl had four excellent seasons at Augsburg before taking over the reins at Veltins Arena and a lot is expected of the 41-year-old manager.
However, he has not enjoyed the best of starts at a big club like Schalke having lost both of his opening league game. The former Augsburg manager finds himself under mounting pressure and will be hoping to secure a win sooner rather than later to get the monkey off his back.
Schalke take on OGC Nice in their opening game of the UEFA Europa League and Weinzierl would be hoping to break the deadlock in France at the Allianz Riviera. After all, all it takes is a win to get the team going.
#4 Leon Goretzka is a star in the making
Bayern Munich failed to assert their superiority and dominance for most parts of the game and this allowed Schalke to have their moments, and no one enjoyed it more than the 21-year-old.
Yes, he should have scored in the 19th minute when he crashed his header against David Alaba, but apart from that the German midfielder was an absolute livewire in the field and was involved in everything attacking for Weinzierl’s side.
Goretzka is considered one of the best talents in the Bundesliga and the German gave enough proof of the same. He created chances, he got on the end of chances, he started counter-attacks and even helped his team out defensively.
If the 21-year-old’s development trajectory remains on the up, it will not be long before one of the biggest clubs in Europe come calling for his services.
#5 Carlo Ancelotti lacks the unpredictability of Pep Guardiola
While Carlo Ancelotti and Pep Guardiola are world class managers in their own right, there’s no denying that the two don’t have the same style of play or even same style of management.
Both of them have had illustrious careers as a player and subsequently as a manager, but when it comes to setting up their team for a match or making a game-changing substitution, the two are poles apart.
While Guardiola is known for being unpredictable and making bold decisions, the cautious approach of Ancelotti might be the missing ingredient that Bayern Munich needed to dominate Europe.
Under Guardiola, The Bavarians made it to the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League in all three seasons but failed at the penultimate hurdle. It is under these circumstances that Ancellotti’s calm might prove to be the difference between defeat and ultimate glory.
A prime example of the same was witnessed during the match. Due to the knock to Arturo Vidal, Ancelotti had to hand a debut to Renato Sanches as he stuck by his tried and tested formation, whereas in a similar circumstance, a Guardiola might have changed the formation or started one of the many supremely talented players at his disposal in a position unfamiliar to them.
While both the approaches have had success, maybe and just maybe, Ancelotti was what was missing from the Allianz Arena to help them conquer Europe once again.
