FC Bayern Forum

The difference between Xavi/Pirlo and Kroos is that Kroos plays behind a striker where unlike those two who play much deeper in the midfield where pace is not as necessary. I hope Pep can put Kroos back in the midfield cause in my opinion thats where he best helps the team. Bayern are much slower on counters when Kroos is the AM or then when Muller or Shaqiri are there.

lau03143 wrote:

sch0ll7 wrote:Please define "slow on the ball" ?

His one touch game still needs improving. He almost always takes at least two touches and slows the play down. But, we've been able to deal with that with how well we've been playing in every other area.

He rarely breaks forward at pace either with the ball, so he's also a slower runner than others.

But that's beside the point. The whole team offered very little in terms of tempo.

You are describing what a good deep lying mid is, the one that plays in front of a stopper, so you are supporting our argument. That’s Schweinsteiger and 20 other great central mids in the world do , most of them lack pace, they give 2-3 touches to the ball before releasing it which gives time to the targets to move around and create the channels in which the ball will be funneled through, from Xavi Alonso to Pirlo.

One touch play is more of a traditional number 10 (Ozil) In my opinion Kroos is a Hybrid that when at his best and with the right combo on his back he is exactly what the Bayern system needs as from the hole he can spin around a few touches before releasing to the wings high on the field, send the through pass to the box with one touch or pull the trigger when he roams on the edge of the box.

Firefox1234 wrote:The difference between Xavi/Pirlo and Kroos is that Kroos plays behind a striker where unlike those two who play much deeper in the midfield where pace is not as necessary. I hope Pep can put Kroos back in the midfield cause in my opinion thats where he best helps the team. Bayern are much slower on counters when Kroos is the AM or then when Muller or Shaqiri are there.

I know the difference my friend...

I wrote that he would be more helpful in CENTRAL MIDFIELD yesterday...It would be better if he played in CM instead of Schweini as he could control the midfield with his passing better than Gustavo or Martinez.

The point I wanted to make is that we would have been much more fluid with him in CM [as Schweini didnt play yesterday] next to martinez or gustavo...than those two playing together. that is all.

I am very happy with his performances as AMC this season...he showed us he is one of the best players in his position. but it would be better for our team if he played MC yesterday as Gustavo and Martinez were not playing good together.

Jorge wrote:

lau03143 wrote:

sch0ll7 wrote:Please define "slow on the ball" ?

His one touch game still needs improving. He almost always takes at least two touches and slows the play down. But, we've been able to deal with that with how well we've been playing in every other area.

He rarely breaks forward at pace either with the ball, so he's also a slower runner than others.

But that's beside the point. The whole team offered very little in terms of tempo.

You are describing what a good deep lying mid is, the one that plays in front of a stopper, so you are supporting our argument. That’s Schweinsteiger and 20 other great central mids in the world do , most of them lack pace, they give 2-3 touches to the ball before releasing it which gives time to the targets to move around and create the channels in which the ball will be funneled through, from Xavi Alonso to Pirlo.

One touch play is more of a traditional number 10 (Ozil) In my opinion Kroos is a Hybrid that when at his best and with the right combo on his back he is exactly what the Bayern system needs as from the hole he can spin around a few touches before releasing to the wings high on the field, send the through pass to the box with one touch or pull the trigger when he roams on the edge of the box.

Exactly, it depends what type of game your having. Last night it wasn't really working.

Truth is Kroos is very slow. He can release players with thru balls but never does because he waits too long and the other person is offside due to them starting the run. I wish Yupp would move either Muller or Shaq into that position with Robben staying on the right.

Even muller had a crap game, one good thing he did is back heel the ball to Robben which Robben f*cked up.

All in all, not one person had a good game, we were quite lucky to get away with it and progress. I just think the team went in with the mentality that Arsenal shouldn't score 3 goals and we are through, instead of going in there with WE need to score and finish them to move on.


BTW, did anyone else watch is on FOX Soccer? I wanted to reach through the screen and slap that English little prick Warren Barton for all his comments against Bayern.

SilverX wrote:BTW, did anyone else watch is on FOX Soccer? I wanted to reach through the screen and slap that English little prick Warren Barton for all his comments against Bayern.

Believe me i have to watch all of Bayern's Champions League games with those biased bastards. Even if Bayern play well they will find time to talk about how bad the other team is other than admitting Bayern are just one of the best teams in the world. Imo they must know nothing about the German Bundesliga or any other league than the EPL and Barca/Madrid to call themselves decent commentators.....

SilverX wrote:Truth is Kroos is very slow. He can release players with thru balls but never does because he waits too long and the other person is offside due to them starting the run. I wish Yupp would move either Muller or Shaq into that position with Robben staying on the right.

Even muller had a crap game, one good thing he did is back heel the ball to Robben which Robben f*cked up.

All in all, not one person had a good game, we were quite lucky to get away with it and progress. I just think the team went in with the mentality that Arsenal shouldn't score 3 goals and we are through, instead of going in there with WE need to score and finish them to move on.


BTW, did anyone else watch is on FOX Soccer? I wanted to reach through the screen and slap that English little prick Warren Barton for all his comments against Bayern.

I did watch it on FSC but recorded as I was at work and I skip the stupidity that they talk.

Muller, besides the backheel pass sent a couple of dangerous crosses on the goal mouth that no one picked up and had a play almost at the end inside the area that drove Arsenal's defense insane turning side to side like 3 times but the shot could not find a void between so many legs. If anyone had a decent game that was Muller.

As for Kroos, no question he is slow but he is an excellent passer and typically sends a few good through ground balls in every game and endless dangerous aerial crosses. Bayern does not play with a traditional No.10 and I think it is intentional as they are not looking for acceleration and quick exchanges in the box (like Barcelona) Bayern's system requires more a player who can retain the ball in the high traffic zone, absorb pressure then release it to the sides for the wingers or overlapping fullbacks, that stretches the opponent's defensive line creating spaces for the array of attacking options that we have.

Just take paper and pencil and write down the name of each Bayern player that has score this season, it is almost everyone except Neuer.

Kroos is fine for what Bayern needs as long as he has Bastian and Martinez/ Gustavo on his back and Kroos as right now is a better option in that role than Shaquiri or Muller. Shaq has more pace, stamina and physical presence but Kroos is a more finished product, better passer and more dangerous from distance. Muller always has played his best on the wing and if played on the center Bayern loses that winger that can track down opponents defensively like no one else.

Borusse wrote:Wenger might be right. Ive been telling you from the start Barcelona in form are better than you, the best in the world in fact but you dont listen. You say you can challenge them - of course! But the generation of players there is simply brilliant and on top of that they have Messi. Barca is not over-hyped, is not overrated. When in form they play the best football Ive seen in my lifetime.

Well yes, but can you really say that Bayern haven't been in better form than Barca all season? Have been since last season, actually.

Yes, you were in better form. But what is the saying? Form is temporary, class is permanent. Of course you have class but Barca is just one step ahead of everybody. Few defeats won't change that. They are simply the best which of course doesnt mean they cannot be defeated, even when in form. CL is not only about pure skill but also about luck and other factors.

You are not ready mentally to win the CL, somewhere along the way the winning mentality was lost.

Wenger's words may as well be changed into "Germany are not ready to win anything".

Well boohoo again!

Borusse wrote:Yes, you were in better form. But what is the saying? Form is temporary, class is permanent. Of course you have class but Barca is just one step ahead of everybody. Few defeats won't change that. They are simply the best which of course doesnt mean they cannot be defeated, even when in form. CL is not only about pure skill but also about luck and other factors.

You are not ready mentally to win the CL, somewhere along the way the winning mentality was lost.

Wenger's words may as well be changed into "Germany are not ready to win anything".

why didnt you say that 3 days ago?

Now that barca defeated Milan 4:0 and Bayern lost at home to Arsenal everything is different?

2 weeks ago when Barca lost to milan and bayern won at London...everyone was talking different.

It is a fact that Barca are not playing as good as they played under Pep. Everyone can see that. They concede too much goals. I am not saying they are not a good team. they are still one of the top clubs and are now probably favorites to win the CL but it seems they are not out of the space anymore...but got back to being a TOP team that can concede goals and be defeated when other team plays to their limits.
When Pep was in charge...winning against them was almost impossible...and if they lost it was because they failed to put those 10 clear cut chances into the back of the net and other team took that 1 half chance that came their way.
Now other teams have 2-3 clear cut chances against them almost every game...while their attack is still strong but not as strong as it was.

We had an off game. you could see that we were not pressing as much as we did throughout the season. We didnt defend well and we didnt take control of the midfield as we do normaly. our players thought we are already there...but let's hope that they took their lesson and will play to 100% in every next game until we win something.

Of course its different! I though, you thought, everyone else thought you are passed your "losers syndrom" but there you are, losing to Arsenal at home in a horrible style. You cant blame it on lack of concentration or underestimating opponent - if you do then its a problem with mentality. Ive never seen Real or Barca getting a great result in the first game and then almost getting eliminated because they lost concentration. They always played till the end and were in control.

I still think you are the most balanced team out there at the moment. Barca plays best football, but I mean best ATTACKING football. They are not even in TOP3 when it comes to defending. But as I said, mentality can change everything. Im afraid you will go far again and screw it up somewhere in the end. Preferably with Dortmund in the final.

I think both Borusse and sch0ll are right. It is funny how we are suddenly no longer considered joint favourites and a lot of people are expecting Juve to beat us. On the other hand it is true that at their best, Barca are better, although I don't think they have been at that level for a long time.

FCBayernMunchen wrote:I think both Borusse and sch0ll are right. It is funny how we are suddenly no longer considered joint favourites and a lot of people are expecting Juve to beat us. On the other hand it is true that at their best, Barca are better, although I don't think they have been at that level for a long time.

It's pretty annoying how often everyone's opinion changes throughout the tournament. Everyone was slamming Barcelona after the 2-0 loss to Milan and how it was the end of the word for Messi and company. Then you have Madrid, who drew United at home and again, everyone was writing them off as well. According to most people, a club is only as good as it's last game. I think that is completely nearsighted and naive.

It helps to have perspective at times like this. I wouldn't say that Bayern's current form is acceptable, but before Arsenal, the last time Bayern had lost was on October 28th! I think that is astonishing. We can talk about the games against Hoffenheim and Dussefdorf, but we won those games and that just shows how good we still are, even when we're at our worst. Unless Bayern start losing games, it's too early to hit the panic button. Until then, its perfectly acceptable to lambast and criticize our team because their recent form.

I just find it annoying that Bayern tend to become complacent and in the Champions League of all places. I can kinda understand them slowing down a bit in the domestic league this year since there 20 points ahead, but in the Champions League that is the last place to take the foot of the pedal. I know as a person who plays football and many other sports its easy to become complacent when u have the lead or feel you are the dominant team but there is still no excuse for playing sloppy.