Flick’s ire looms as Bayern bid to break bad habit in Gladbach test

Bayern Munich head to Borussia Moenchengladbach for Friday’s Bundesliga match aiming to end their current trend of conceding the opening goal, which has angered head coach Hansi Flick into shouting fits in the dressing room.

“I can also get loud -- no problem -- that’s something you learn over the years,” said Flick after giving his players a half-time roasting last Sunday against Mainz before they came roaring back to win 5-2 from two goals down.

“It’s sometimes all part of saying, quite clearly, what’s going on.”

Bayern head to Borussia Park unbeaten in their last 20 games in all competitions.

Yet buried in that run are two revealing statistics.

Flick’s team have conceded the first goal in their last eight league games, but fought back on all eight occasions for five wins and three draws.

Sloppy passes and “negligent” tackling led to them again trailing relegation candidates Mainz.

Flick insists Bayern’s first-half performance was “not what you expect from a top team”.

After his sharp words in the dressing room, he switched Joshua Kimmich to right-back with Leon Goretzka shoring up midfield.

The effect was almost instantaneous as Kimmich scored their first goal, then set up Leroy Sane for the second as Mainz’s lead was wiped out in 11 minutes at the start of the second half.

“The important thing is not to just scream blue murder, but to give the players something they can use to do better,” Flick said.

“It’s great to know that we can fight back, but our goal has to be that we take the lead,” said Kimmich, back after knee surgery last November.

Moenchengladbach, who face Manchester City in the Champions League last 16 next month, are one of Bayern’s oldest Bundesliga rivals.

They last beat Bayern 2-1 at Borussia Park in December 2019 when Algerian free-kick specialist Ramy Bensebaini scored both goals.

After suffering from Covid-19 in November, the 25-year-old defender made a brief comeback on Saturday when he helped protect a slender 1-0 lead at Arminia Bielefeld.

Head coach Marco Rose has said Bensebaini could feature on Friday.

Saturday’s victory, thanks to Breel Embolo’s second-half goal, ended Gladbach’s run of four league games without a win.

“Bayern Munich are probably the best team in the world right now, it’s going to be a highlight,” said Gladbach midfielder Florian Neuhaus.

With three goals in Embolo’s past five outings, plus an assist, the Gladbach forward has been the protagonist of an attack brimming with talent. With Marcus Thuram suspended, the Swiss striker will be leading the Foals’ attack in more ways than one – and in ways not even Robert Lewandowski contributes for the record champions.

His 166 tackles won are 43 more than Lewandowski, while his top speed is also superior (34.16 to 33.45 km/h), coming from among his 240 sprints compared to Lewandowski’s 231. For work rate, Embolo cannot be faulted, and his recent impact in front of goal is quite impressive. It could be even greater up against a Bayern defence that has conceded first for the last eight matches.

However, Lewandowski’s return of 19 goals so far this season, in just 13 appearances, makes him untouchable. Gerd Müller’s single-season record of 40 goals is under serious threat as the world’s best striker delivers his best form ever. With a goal every 57 minutes on average this season, Lewandowski has raised his own outstanding levels of prolificacy, and the man who topped the scoring charts in all three competitions he appeared in last term – the Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League and DFB Cup – is showing absolutely no sign of abdicating. It goes without saying that Lewandowski would put any team at an advantage.