Bayern Munich continued their march towards retaining the Bundesliga title with a win over Schalke away from home. The win came despite a spirited display from the home team.
While both sides came close to finding the back of the net during the game, it was Robert Lewandowski, who opened the scoring for Bayern, when he latched on to a glorious through ball from Javi Martinez to put the ball past the Schalke goalkeeper in the 81st minute. He then turned provider to assist Joshua Kimmich’s goal in the 92nd minute to truly kill the game.
Here are the player ratings from Bayern’s win over Schalke
Schalke
Ralf Fahrmann – 6/10
The goalkeeper was well protected by his central defenders Naldo and Matija Nastasic for most parts of the game and could not be blamed for either of the Bayern’s goals.
Abdul Baba Rahman – 7/10
The full-back showcased why he was amongst the most highly-rated full-backs in Germany until his ill-fated move to Chelsea and made some great attacking movements while ensuring he does his share of defensive duties impeccably.
Naldo – 7/10
Naldo was impressive in the air, commanded the box and did some proactive defensive work to keep the star-studded Bayern attack quiet for most parts of the evening. While he was caught out for the opener, his performance should give Schalke fans the confidence that he is the right man for their defence.
Matija Nastasic – 6/10
Nastasic complemented his team-mate, Naldo, during the game and seems to be forming a solid partnership with the Schalke defender.
Benedict Howedes – 6/10
The Schalke captain managed to keep Franck Ribery silent during his time on the pitch. However, the introduction of Douglas Costa made his life tough as he failed to match up to the pace fo the Bayern winger.
Benjamin Stambouli – 7/10
Stambouli had a busy evening as he hassled the Bayern midfield, offering them no time and space on the ball. He was taken off the pitch in the 86th minute for Kolasinac.
Nabil Bentaleb – 5/10
The industrious midfielder did his best to dictate the tempo of the game, however, to no avail and was largely restricted to defensive duties during the game.
Leon Goretzka – 7/10
The young German was Schalke’s best attacking player on the pitch and constantly troubled the Bayern defence with his movement and passing, though he couldn’t help his side score a goal.
Yevhen Konoplyanka – 5/10
The Ukrainian was poor until deployed on the left wing. However, he did present Schalke with their first scoring opportunity late in the first half. Konoplyanka was taken off in the 55th minute for young Breel Embolo.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting – 6/10
The pacy winger combined acceleration and strength to his advantage to push back the Bayern defence in the first half. However, he failed to replicate his first half exploits in the second half and his influence on the game gradually decreased.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar – 7/10
The Dutch strikers hold up play was excellent and he went close to scoring in the second half when his well-struck effort bounced off the crossbar. Huntelaar was taken off in the 67th minute for Max Meyer.
Substitutes
Max Meyer – 5/10
The young German failed to add to the attacking impetus of his side during his time on the pitch.
Breel Embolo – 5/10
Embolo to use his pace to get behind the Bayern defence, however, to no avail. He was easily dealt with by the experienced Bayern back line.
Sead Kolasinac – NA
Kolasinac did not have enough time on the pitch to make an impact.
Bayern Munich
Manuel Neuer – 6/10
The German goalkeeper’s best moment in the game came midway through the second half when he made an acrobatic save to deny Huntelaar. Barring that, it was a normaly day at the office for Neuer.
David Alaba – 7/10
The Austrian full-back was lively, finding space for himself and constantly testing the Schalke defence with his crosses.
Mats Hummels – 6/10
Hummels not have a lot to do for most parts of the evening and dealt with the threat of Embolo with his experience rather easily.
Philipp Lahm – 6/10
It was a rather underwhelming overall performance by the Bayern captain. However, he did his fair share of defensive as well as attacking duties to keep the game ticking in Bayern’s favour.
Javi Martinez – 8/10
Martinez was Bayern’s best player through the evening. He was solid defensively and was responsible for his side’s opening goal when he found Lewandowski with a perfectly weighted through ball.
Franck Ribery – 6/10
Ribery got into some great positions over the attacking third of the pitch. However, he was unable to use it to Bayern’s advantage and was substituted for a more effective Costa in the 61st minute.
Xabi Alonso – 5/10
While he did spray the ball around with great accuracy, he could not dictate the tempo of the game. Alonso was substituted for the more dynamic Arturo Vidal in the 61st minute.
Renato Sanches – 4/10
The Portugal star was sluggish with his passing, giving away possession cheaply on numerous occasions during his time on the pitch. While he is still young and will improve, given the price Bayern paid for his services, we expected more from him during the game. He was substituted for Kimmich in the 71st minute.
Thiago Alcantara – 7/10
The Spaniard dictated the tempo of the game for Bayern and was a tough man to dislodge off the ball, making him an attacking threat for most parts of the evening to the Schalke defence.
Thomas Muller – 6/10
Muller didn’t have a clear-cut chance until late in the game, an effort which he directed wide and was well contained by the Schalke defenders.
Robert Lewandowski – 7/10
He squandered a glorious chance in the first-half. However, he did make amends with a neat finish from the Martinez through ball and then turned provider to kill the game.
Substitutes
Arturo Vidal – 6/10
The Chilean added some much-needed muscle to his side’s midfield during his time on the pitch.
Douglas Costa – 7/10
Benedict Howedes was having a rather pleasant evening until Costa arrived on the pitch. The Brazilian attacker used his pace and skill to great effect.
Joshua Kimmich – 7/10
The midfielder was tidy in possession as well as passing and found the back of the net in the Bundesliga for the first time late in the second half.
