Liverpool 0-0 Bayern Munich - 5 Talking Points, UEFA Champions League 2018-19

#4 Bayern's midfield - A tale of two halves

Javi Martinez played the midfield destroyer's role perfectly in the second half

In the first half, it is not an understatement to say that the Bayern Munich midfield was eaten alive, as they were like deer caught in the headlights. Liverpool were intense, they were strong and they meant business.

Henderson set the tone for Wijnaldum and Naby Keita to follow, and Bayern were under the cosh. The usually-so-reliable Thiago Alcantara was being forced into mistakes, Javi Martinez was feeling the pace, and James Rodriguez never really got into the game.

Bayern were also a little off the pace before the breather. They were allowing Keita and Wijnaldum to breeze past them like there was no one there, Firmino was dropping deep to link up play as well, which added to the Bavarians' problems.

Post the break, though, Bayern were a different side, especially in the middle of the park. They played the game at the pace they wanted to play it at. And, it started with them dropping a little bit deeper, which meant they weren't as exposed to the counter-press as they were in the first-half.

Martinez, in particular, was a revelation. He set the tone for Niko Kovac's side after the break. He broke up play beautifully, made some critical interventions in the box, and was a brickwall against Liverpool set-pieces.

In truth, that was also facilitated by an even more conservative Bayern approach to the second half, with Kovac very happy to take the draw, or even nick a win on the off-chance that Serge Gnabry or Kingsley Coman could use their speed and skill on the break.