Bayern Munich slumped to their first defeat of the season, losing 2-0 to a pair of first-half goals at capital-city club Hertha Berlin on Friday.
Positives
Despite tasting defeat for the first time this season, the champions held on to the Bundesliga’s top spot on goal difference.
Negatives
Failing to score in the Bundesliga for the first time since February (against Hertha), Bayern also suffered their first defeat during Oktoberfest in over eight years, going down for the first time since 2009 and the days of Jurgen Klinsmann (as well as Andriy Voronin) against normally hapless Hertha.
Manager rating out of 10
5 — Niko Kovac shuffled his troops again, making six changes from the side that drew disappointingly vs. Augsburg in midweek. With injuries taking their toll, and chasing a two-goal deficit, Kovac had no choice but to use all three of his attacking substitutes, but somehow Franck Ribery stayed on the pitch for the entire game as Kovac slipped to his first defeat in charge.
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Manuel Neuer, 6 — Brilliantly kept out Vedad Ibisevic’s header, but Jerome Boateng immediately ruined the captain’s good work by bringing down Salomon Kalou to concede the opening penalty. He was powerless to prevent Ondrej Duda’s second for Hertha as well.
DF David Alaba, 5 — An average performance at left-back, especially after his bright start to the season.
DF Jerome Boateng, 4 — Rested for the previous two Bundesliga games but failed to cover himself in glory on his return to his first club, giving away a penalty with a needless challenge after Neuer’s fantastic stop. He did go close with a couple of headers but couldn’t repair the damage of his clumsy challenge that set Bayern on their way to the defeat. We await Karl-Heinz Rummenigge’s inevitable “back to earth” advice with baited breath.
DF Niklas Sule, 6 — Solid and unspectacular, therefore failing to catch the eye in comparison to his Germany teammate.
DF Joshua Kimmich, 5 — Had a goal-bound shot diverted wide by Ribery’s backside and enjoyed promising moments going forward, but always a little uncomfortable when asked to do some basic defending.
MF Renato Sanches, 5 — Had a couple of surging runs, but this was largely Sanches slipping back to his form under Carlo Ancelotti as the game passed him by.
MF Thiago, 6 — Restored to central midfield, the silky Spaniard was also below his best, but at least he got the dejected team together at the final whistle to show their appreciation to the fans for making the long journey to the German capital on a Friday evening.
MF James Rodriguez, 4 — The Colombia star cut a forlorn figure throughout and he made way for Sandro Wagner’s uninspiring overture on 72 minutes.
MF Franck Ribery, 4 — Restored to the starting lineup, the 35-year-old veteran struggled in vain, displaying precious little spark throughout. Was honestly fortunate to play the full 90 minutes, catching the eye only with a couple of clumsy attempts when trying to “earn” a penalty.
MF Arjen Robben, 6 — Toiled industriously in the first half and, with Bayern chasing the game, there were certainly more deserving candidates to be hooked off as the “Flying Dutchman” made way for Thomas Muller on 52 minutes.
FW Robert Lewandowski, 4 — Didn’t feature against local rivals Augsburg as Bayern dropped their first points of the season. Before the game, there was the school of thought that the return of Lewy would be the cure for a host of missed chances in midweek. Wrong. Bayern’s leading scorer was largely anonymous throughout.
Substitutes:
MF Thomas Muller, 5 — Brought on for Robben after 52 minutes but couldn’t provide any attacking impetus.
MF Serge Gnabry, 6 — The former Arsenal winger replaced Sanches and enjoyed some promising moments but little of the desired end product.
FW Sandro Wagner, NR — Dropped to the bench after his distinctly average game vs. Augsburg and caught the eye only when acting as a ball boy as he attempted to hurry up Hertha’s play while the hosts comfortably held on to their lead.
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