Daily Schmankerl: The aftermath of Bayern Munich vs. VfB Stuttgart

 Die Folgen: Bayern’s 3-1 win over Stuttgart (Bavarian Football Works)

Bayern Munich hopped on a bus, drove to VfB Stuttgart, slagged through about 44 minutes, and then got it together in time to notch a 3-1 win over a very tough, but massively mistake-prone side from Die Schwaben.

It was not pretty, it was not easy, but it was a win — and the momentum train can keep on rolling down the tracks as the Bavarians prepare to face Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League.

Without Joshua Kimmich, Sacha Boey, and Aleksandar Pavlović, Vincent Kompany had to shift some things around — and took a few risks in doing so. Starting Harry Kane with Bayer Leverkusen waiting in the Champions League on Wednesday was a bit iffy. Similarly, continuing to use Kim Min-jae while dealing with Achilles tendonitis was questionable.

Otherwise, Dayot Upamecano was rested in favor of Eric Dier, Alphonso Davies stepped back into the lineup for Hiroki Itō, and Leroy Sané got the nod at left wing. Konrad Laimer played at right-back and Leon Goretzka and João Palhinha patrolled the central midfield.

As expected, Bayern Munich was disjointed and out of rhythm at times early on. Some players looked out of synch from missing time, while others just were not sharp early. In addition, there was a lot of miscommunication that kept things very uneven.

All the while, VfB Stuttgart threw caution to the wind and decided it would not just sit back and pray for a counter-attacking opportunity.

Deniz Undav hit the post in the 32nd minute on a shot that could have easily been a goal. Roughly a third of the way through the match and Bayern Munich looked distracted (which might be natural given the Bayer Leverkusen match on Wednesday in the Champions League).

Then it happened...and fittingly, it was former Bayern Munich prospect Angelo Stiller who unleashed a brilliant, left-footed rocket to beat Neuer. The play was a bit unlucky as it started with a turnover that happened when Sané slipped. Regardless, Bayern Munich was in a deserved 1-0 hole.

On the goal, Manuel Neuer appeared to have his vision screened, but it might not have mattered anyway. You could certainly argue that Neuer’s positioning was off, but it is unclear if he even could see through the bodies in front of him.

In the 45th minute, though, Sané sent in Michael Olise, who had — somehow — snuck behind VfB Stuttgart’s backline for an easy goal. It sure looked like Olise was offside, but it was ruled a goal (no complaints here).

Off topic, but Alexander Nübel has a tremendous mustache.

The teams entered halftime knotted at 1-1, which felt kind of lucky for Bayern Munich.

This was one of those games where it looked like Bayern Munich did not know how to get Kane involved.

This was not Jamal Musiala’s best game, either — which made it all the more impressive that Bayern Munich was able to find a way to win.

When Bayern Munich needed a jolt, though, it was Goretzka who stepped up and made a play. With Bayern Munich showing a high press, Nübel — excellent stache be damned — inexplicably played a slow ball to Stiller right in front of the net; essentially hanging the midfielder out to dry. For his part, Stiller should have just unloaded the ball away from him as soon as possible, but Goretzka was on him instantly, guessed right, used his physicality to tackle the ball loose and scored a goal like something you might see in U-9 or U-10...not the Bundesliga.

Nübel really might have iced his Bayern Munich future (in a bad way) with this performance.

Speaking of poor performances...Alphonso Davies...WOOF! This was totally uncharacteristic for Davies, who only lost possession 10 times (typically a benchmark for success is 15 times or less), but scuffled with some decision-making and also with defensive positioning at times.

Nübel was not done with questionable plays, though. He charged out of net at Kingsley Coman in a desperate attempt to save his backline, who botched the play horrifically. However, it was a lost cause as he just ended up looking silly as Coman hit his shot in before the goalkeeper could tackle the ball away. That made it 3-1 and Bayern Munich could start the bus (literally).

In the game’s waning moments, Josip Stanišić was slammed in the head by a pass from close range, which left him dazed and maybe in jeopardy for the Bayer Leverkusen match.

Overall, Bayern Munich got the job done and showed great fight and resilience to be able to win a tough match on the road. Several players who have been maligned in one way or another stepped up and performed, while several key players (Kane, Musiala, Davies notably) were not great. VfB Stuttgart is a tough squad with a good coach. They opted to stand in and fight with Bayern Munich during a period when many teams bail out of such a strategy...and they almost pulled it off. Simply put, VfB Stuttgart just fell apart after Olise’s goal. That is the Bayern Munich effect — knowing they would need to be perfect to take down Bayern Munich in the second half was too much for the home side too handle.