‘Active but not too open’
Tue | 20/08/24 | 15:00
Bayern all set for the Bundesliga after Grasshoppers friendly
Bayern are all set for the new Bundesliga campaign and Sunday’s opener in Wolfsburg after another impressive display in their final friendly of pre-season. The team put on a show with their performance at the Campus against Grasshopper Club Zürich, running out 4-0 winners. There were a number of positives for Vincent Kompany’s side against their Swiss opponents.
As they’d been in previous games during pre-season, Bayern were on the front foot and pressing high. Winning the ball several times in the opposition half meant they carved out a number of chances. “The levels of activity with wanting to defend on the front foot, we’ve seen that throughout pre-season, but obviously also with an eye on not being too open,” claimed Max Eberl after full-time.
New signing Michael Olise was impressive against Grasshoppers and opened the scoring.
It was a chance for players who returned late to pre-season to get some more minutes under their belts. “It was important we had another warm-up game to gain fitness and further engrain the patterns and new ideas,” added the board member for sport, who appeared pleased with how the team played. “It was a positive result, and we didn’t concede any goals.”
Olise impresses
Michael Olise’s performance in particular will have made fans even more excited for the coming campaign. Bayern’s new forward only arrived for training last week after his exploits at the Olympic Games, but he’s given viewers an immediate insight into his ability with an assist off the bench in the DFB Cup against Ulm last Friday and now from the start against Grasshoppers, with the 22-year-old scoring the opening goal. “He’s continuing what he showed at the Olympics. He’s only been here a week, but he’s already looked very good,” stated Eberl.
Mathys Tel scored Bayern’s third goal against Grasshoppers.
The 50-year-old believes the team are now very much set to kick off the league season at the weekend: “I have a very good feeling with the squad. We’re really happy. The new coaching team is bringing in new energy. The players have had some very good performances in pre-season.”
Forward Mathys Tel, who scored a sublime goal for Bayern’s third, is also optimistic looking ahead to Matchday 1: “The game was important for our confidence. We’ve worked very hard and are ready for Wolfsburg. We need to remain calm and attack in the game.”
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