Tuchel has so far been absolved of responsibility, with polls showing the bulk of Bayern fans blaming Salihamidzic and Kahn in that order for the Bayern crisis. In the six-minute summary of the 3-1 defeat in Mainz on ZDF’s weekly TV institution, das aktuelle Sportstudio, there were 11 closeups of the stunned pair, variously grimacing, yelling or generally looking ready to explode. After all, they were the ones who created this mess when there was no clamour for Nagelsmann’s departure.
A few months ago, Salihamidzic was being richly praised for his excellent squad-building work, with the signing of world star Sadio Mane seen as the jewel in the crown. Now, Bayern resemble a collection of good and in some cases very good individuals, but part of a flawed mix and flavour that’s missing key ingredients.
When Robert Lewandowksi left for Barcelona, most were beguiled by the idea that Bayern could succeed without a top-quality centre-forward by focusing instead on a fluid, versatile and dynamic attack featuring Mane, Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry, Thomas Muller and Jamal Musiala. That mistake, the absence of an established finisher, must now be addressed this summer. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting is a fine backup and well-liked in the dressing room, but a team of Bayern’s ambitions needs a top-performing striker.
Tuchel also wants a true defensive midfield specialist next season, which is a slight indictment of the Kimmich-Goretzka partnership. Goretzka has been off form for weeks and will miss Saturday’s trip to Werder Bremen (12:30 p.m. ET, stream live on ESPN+) through suspension. To be fair to Kimmich, he put in a two-assist performance on Sunday in the nervy win over bottom club Hertha Berlin.
For various reasons, the jury is still out on summer signings Noussair Mazraoui and Ryan Gravenberch, but fellow offseason arrival Matthijs de Ligt has been a huge success and regularly shows his defensive and leadership qualities. Yann Sommer, signed out of necessity in January because of the season-ending leg fracture Manuel Neuer suffered while skiing after the World Cup, was always going to find it difficult when compared to a man whose interpretation of the goalkeeping position is hard to match.
Overall, Salihamidzic gets a passing grade at best for his management of the personnel available to first Nagelsmann and now Tuchel.
Right now, Bayern are in day-to-day mode. There’s a huge cloud hanging over Salihamidzic and Kahn, while Tuchel is charged with just getting the Rekordmeister over the finish line. Kahn incidentally says he will be staying put despite suggestions that his fate could be sealed at a supervisory board meeting later this month.
The narrative that Bayern are wobbling is very real, and although they now have control of the table again, no one can say with absolute conviction that their past four matches (at Bremen, home against Schalke 04 and Leipzig and away to Cologne) will end in victories. Very little at Germany’s biggest, most successful club in recent weeks has been “Bayern-like.”
