Sadio Mane and 5 other players scored for Bayern Munich against Eintracht Frankfurt in the first Bundesliga game in a devastating show of firepower.
The German Champions defeated their opponents by a score of 6 on match day one in Germany, proving that Bayern can do without Robert Lewandowski.
If there were any doubts about Bayern Munich’s ability to replace Robert Lewandowski, they were categorically dispelled on Friday night when the German champions humiliated Eintracht Frankfurt.
Sadio Mane, a Senegalese striker who joined Bayern this summer as a de facto substitute for Lewandowski, scored Bayern’s third goal in the 6-1 blowout which was counted as his first Bundesliga goal.
After just five minutes, Joshua Kimmich scored the game’s first goal after misfiring a free kick through the smoke from the Frankfurt fans’ fireworks and fooling Eintracht goalkeeper Kevin Trapp.
Benjamin Pavard quickly scored from a corner, unmarked, with all Frankfurt defenders caught chasing the ball.
Kimmich and Pavard both ran over to celebrate with Bayern’s set-piece coach Dino Topmöller after scoring, showing that they had practiced their free-kick and corner routines previously.
“Dino mentioned in the week that Trappo [Kevin Trapp] tends to stand a bit further off his line, so maybe give it a go,” Kimmich told DAZN post-match.
“The free-kick was probably a bit far out for it, to be honest,” laughed head coach Julian Nagelsmann. “But he hit it well, so compliments to all involved.”
The Sadio Mane show
Mane made way for each of the following three goals: the first came from a cross by Serge Gnabry, the second came from a Jamal Musiala tap-in, and the third came from a 50-50 challenge with Frankfurt captain Sebastian Rode that helped set up Gnabry for Bayern’s fifth goal.
Kolo Muani, a recent French arrival from Nantes, scored Frankfurt’s consolation goal by taking advantage of a rare Manuel Neuer blunder and slipping the ball into the empty net.
However, it made no difference because Musiala, who dominated Frankfurt’s midfield in the first half, added another goal late to complete the thrashing.
“We’re all technically good so we’re all trying to combine with each other up front,” said Musiala. “We did the same with Robert Lewandowski in the ream but now we just have to find other ways.”
It’s not good for Eintracht Frankfurt, the stunning Europa League champions from last season, to lose so embarrassingly at home, especially after adding Mario Götze, the German World Cup winner, and Lucas Alario from Bayer Leverkusen.
To tighten up the midfield, head coach Oliver Glasner had Daichi Kamada replaced with his captain, Rode, despite the Japanese playmaker scoring two goals in the cup against Magdeburg on Monday. But his strategy failed.
Bayern won their tenth consecutive championship last season and based on their performance, they are strong favorites to win their eleventh. Julian Nagelsmann, the team’s head coach, is instilling his attitude in the group after a rookie season and rookie championship.
Lewandowski’s departure frees Bayern from the need to rely solely on one striker, giving Nagelsmann greater freedom to reshape the squad in his image.
This resulted in a vertical 4-2-2-2 formation in Frankfurt, with Mane and Gnabry at the head and Musiala, Müller, Kimmich, and Sabitzer trailing behind.
The outcome was disastrous for the opposing team.
