"Emergency nail" hits against Kovac: VAR slows down Mané, but not Bayern

Superstar Sadio Mané scored several times at the end of the second match day of the Bundesliga against VfL Wolfsburg, but none of the attempts counted.

"Emergency nail" hits against Kovac: VAR slows down Mané, but not Bayern

Superstar Sadio Mané scored several times at the end of the second match day of the Bundesliga against VfL Wolfsburg, but none of the attempts counted. But it's enough for the record champions to get their second win in the second game.

Bayern insider Niko Kovac was unable to prevent the Meister-Express around Thomas Müller from steaming to the next victory on his return to Munich. The series champion had to settle for a deserved 2-0 (2-0) against VfL Wolfsburg, who was coached by his ex-coach, in the Bundesliga. Bayern's newcomer Sadio Mané was annoyed that the video assistant denied him two goals for offside.

After the second matchday only Borussia Dortmund is tied with the leader on points. For Wolfsburg, on the other hand, it remains the same: Even in the 26th attempt, there was no victory in Munich. Young star Jamal Musiala started in front of 75,000 spectators in the Allianz Arena with his third goal of the season (33rd minute). The leader Müller, who was demoted to an "emergency nail" by Kovac during his time as Bayern coach, showed his ex-boss before the break with his goal to make it 2-0 (43rd), which he celebrated with raised fists.

In the new Schafkopf jersey for the Champions League, the Bayern aces could no longer gamble with their opponents so easily after the break. The Wolfsburg, where substitute Max Kruse remained pale, defended themselves properly. Leroy Sané, who came for Serge Gnabry and visibly tried hard, forced the good Koen Casteels to parade twice in the VfL goal. And Mané narrowly missed making it 3-0 with a header (69').

Of course, Kovac still knew from his time at Bayern that there was no point in playing an opponent in Munich. He aligned his team quite courageously. In the first few minutes, Munich defenders Dayot Upamecano, Lucas Hernández and Alphonso Davies had to clear the ball in their own penalty area. "We got into the game well, had a good grip, were bilious, but didn't take advantage of it," commented VfL sports director Marcel Schäfer at DAZN during the break. This was primarily due to Bayern, who stepped on the accelerator after a drinking break, which coach Julian Nagelsmann used to give instructions to his professionals.

When Bayern showed off their individual class collectively with speed and one-touch football, the Wolfsburg team was overwhelmed. Often, high-speed kicker Davies with solo runs was the starting point, even with the goals recognized. Müller served Musiala, who held his own against two opponents and finished precisely. After another cross run, Davies served international Joshua Kimmich, whose shot Müller reacted quickly with his left foot into the Wolfsburg goal. Wolfsburg didn't do enough offensively - even substitute Kruse had no effect.