In what was billed to be much more of a contest on the heels of two straight draws for Bayern Munich, the Bundesliga champions handily dispatched RB Leipzig, winning 6-1 at the Allianz Arena over the weekend. They now have exactly the momentum they were looking for ahead of a massive Champions League clash against Arsenal this week and were able to give some players a rest in the second half with the comfortable lead they held over Leipzig.
Vincent Kompany used all five substitutions in the win over Leipzig, allowing Konrad Laimer, Harry Kane, Ismael Saibari, and Aleksandar Pavlović to get at least some rest in the second half. It is expected that most of those players will be back in his starting lineup for the Arsenal match.
Min-jae Kim was also taken off in the second half, though it might not have been fully planned by Bayern. After the match, board member for sport Max Eberl—who covered media duties due to Kompany’s hip problem and recovery from an illness—explained that Kim was experiencing a few minor issues, which is why he was replaced by Sacha Boey in the 77th minute.
For Boey, it was his first appearance of the season for Bayern after a summer where the club failed to find a proper destination for him during the transfer window. They had made it clear the player was not in Kompany’s plans for this season, but nothing wound up materializing for the Frenchman.
As such, Eberl said he was happy Boey was able to make a cameo against Leipzig, noting that the defender has remained intensely professional despite a tough situation.
“That was nice. Minjae was having a few problems, so he had to come off. Sacha gives 100% in training. He throws himself into everything. He knows that his situation here is extremely difficult. But he got his chance today. The coach rewarded him for his performances in training, and that’s a great thing to see,” Eberl stressed to Bild (via @iMiaSanMia).
Even though the club greatly appreciates how Boey has handled everything and how he continues to conduct himself professionally, there is still not a long-term future for him in the current setup. The January transfer window will provide another opportunity for a potential solution to be found for the defender.
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