From 'A' all the way to 'Z', the Bavarian dictionary contains a number of expressions that are otherwise rather rare in the German-speaking world. Throughout the myriad of words, one phrase does not exist. One that this Bayern team have never succumbed to. 'Giving up.'
With aggressive tackling, Bayern brought themselves back into the game after trailing at the break against Mainz.
If you weren't aware of this fact, you only had to watch the performance of the German record champions against Mainz on Sunday evening to be proven wrong. "Our mentality forced the win," was how Hansi Flick summed it up after his team celebrated a 5-2 victory over the men from Mainz on Sunday evening despite being 2-0 down at the break, all thanks to a brilliant second-half comeback.
Unprecedented comeback qualities
However, it was not the first time this season that this show of strength has had to be shown by the Bavarians. FCB have fallen behind in each of their previous eight Bundesliga games - but they've also become the first team in the history of Germany's top flight not to lose a single one of those games. "At the moment we need a wake-up call to go full throttle and score our goals," said Leroy Sané, who equalised to 2-2 after 55 minutes.
Leroy Sané made it 2-2 in the 55th minute.
The challenge was more difficult against Mainz with Bayern facing a 2-0 deficit at the break, and turning over a two goal deficit in the second half for the first time since their 4-3 win over Leverkusen in May 1988. "We'll be back, and we won't stop. We’re determined to score when we’re behind," said Sané. Fortunately, FCB put their foot on the gas in the second half and launched their outstanding attacking prowess:
Reliable in attack
Thanks to five goals in just over 30 minutes, the reigning champions increased their goal tally to 44 after 14 games – a mark only exceeded once in Bundesliga history, by Bayern themselves in the 1976/77 season (48). "We know we can turn games around," said Joshua Kimmich, who sparked the FCB victory with a goal to make it 2-1 in the 50th minute.
"It was important for us to show a reaction," said Kimmich, who was still a little annoyed about how the game went: "Nevertheless, our aim must be to get the lead, and then we’ll win games more easily. It always requires a lot of energy." Who knows, maybe Bayern will find ‘clean sheet victory' in their dictionary soon.
After the game, Bayern were satisfied overall:
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