Champions Bayern Munich crushed hosts VfL Bochum 7-0 on Sunday, with new signing Sadio Mane scoring twice, preserving their perfect start to the campaign. Summer signing Matthijs de Ligt made it two with his Bayern Munich debut goal on 25 minutes, Kingsley Coman added a third at the half-hour mark, with Mane getting his first on a low, driving shot just two minutes before the break. Sadio Mane scored his second and Bayern Munich’s fifth goal of the half with a penalty kick, then Christian Gamboa’s own goal and Serge Gnabry’s late seventh took Bayern’s tally of goals scored in the three games of the Bundesliga campaign to 15. Bayern Munich has now scored nine goals in two games this season, and the visitors did not need much time to get going when Leroy Sane opened the scoring in the fourth minute.
Bayern tore VfL Bochum apart in a devastating four-goal burst over 42 minutes of the first half, which was set off by a first-time strike from Leroy Sane in the game’s early stages. Champions Bayern Munich took the lead through Leroy Sane on their opening attack of the match. With three wins from three games and a goal differential of plus 14, Bayern Munich had made the best start to the Bundesliga 2022-23 campaign of any side. The champions, Bayern Munich, sit two points clear atop with nine points from their three league games, having now scored a league-high 15 goals from three games, although leading scorer Robert Lewandowski left this season for Barcelona.
Lewandowski, the Polish international, felt humiliated by Bayern Munich’s desire to recruit Haaland as a long-term successor for him. Lewandowski decided to go from Bayern this summer and moved to FC Barcelona last month. After Haaland relocated to Manchester City, Bayern Munich agreed to acquire Sadio Mane from Liverpool. The 30-year-old has also had a solid start to life at Munich, scoring four goals in only four games.
Robert Lewandowski, a former goalscorer for Bayern Munich, recently reflected on his incredible career with the German Rekordmeister and said he wouldn’t want his current team, FC Barcelona, to be paired up against his old one so early in the Champions League group stages. Joshua Kimmich, an old teammate and replacement captain in Bavaria, responded with a wise and wonderful response, “Probably for a good reason”. Kimmich has every right to feel good with the kind of start Bayern has had this year. However, Barcelona is also no pushover, and putting aside their current rivalry, they could provide Bayern with the proper test to put Nagelsmann’s strategy to the test this season. Many Bayern fans would welcome the challenge of a team with fluid midfield proficiency, quick creators on the wings, and a world-class striker through the middle for their high-press assault.
