A resurgent Bayern Munich rallied back to defeat Jurgen Klopp’s side 4-3 in their pre-season encounter.
The first 30 minutes of the match had been in Liverpool’s favor via goals from Cody Gakpo (2’) and Virgil van Dijk (28’). However, goals from Serge Gnabry (33’), Leroy Sane (42’), Josip Stanisic (80’) and Frans Krätzig (90+1’) were more than sufficient to see Bayern sink the Premier League side, cancelling out what was a 66th-minute Luis Diaz goal that had given Liverpool a 3-2 lead at the time.
This is Bayern’s third pre-season victory if one were to include the 27-0 routing of FC Rottach Egern. On the other hand, it’s Liverpool’s first defeat of pre-season. Both sides have been busy restructuring their tactical lineups while also experimenting with different players and formations as the beginning of the respective club seasons is looming ahead.
The Rottach Egern friendly aside, this was the first time that Bayern scored more than once against their opponent and the second time that Liverpool has conceded four goals, having also done so prior to that against SpVgg Greuther Fürth in a 4-4 draw. In the Reds’ 4-3 defeat to Bayern, the lack of cohesion was a recurrent theme between the two sets of backlines, with new signing Kim Min-jae having started for only the second time, lining up alongside Dayot Upamecano. Liverpool’s team was arguably at full strength with the formidable back four of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Joel Matip, and Andy Robertson.
Klopp spoke post-match, attributing their conceding of the four goals to Bayern to the Reds’ lack of concentration in defensive situations.
“You saw the goals we conceded were mainly lack of concentration in the moment twice. A very similar situation, the first goal we conceded and I think the fourth, were very similar. It’s obviously not allowed but it can happen anyway. We have to analyze it properly, I have enough time to do that on the flight home,” he explained (via LFC.com), and added specific mention of Gnabry’s goal in the 33rd minute and Krätzig’s stoppage time winner that came on the tale end of a long back out of the back from Matthijs de Ligt.
“I thought we played super in the first 10 minutes or so and then we were really in the game, bam, bam, bam, everything was clicking and then you could see the players probably had a look at the watch and thought, ‘It’s only 10 minutes, feels like an hour and 50.’ And that’s obviously the moment in the preseason where it’s clear,” Klopp went on, also particularly noting how the momentum started to swing in Bayern’s favor after they surged back with two goals of their own from Gnabry and Sane.
“Around the goals obviously not that great, but there were a lot of other moments that were really, really good as well. The last line was good. We have to still adjust. It’s not so much about the boys and stuff, [but] yes it is, of course, in these moments. The first goal we concede, Trent and Joel have to react better. This pass, I don’t think it is [able] to avoid, to be 100 percent honest. We cannot always be there and block all balls, sometimes balls will fly towards our last line,” Klopp explained.”