Four Observations from Bayern Munich’s 5-1 win against VfB Stuttgart

Bayern Munich are back in the Bundesliga. The 2026/27 season has begun on a high note, with Bayern winning emphatically against big teams. VfB Stuttgart last season placed fourth in the Bundesliga table, securing a Champions League spot. They continue to show their quality this season, and made Bayern fight hard through the second half to take a win home.

Here are the observations from the Bundesliga opener.

Bayern Munich started the game with an interesting squad that may as well become the norm this season. The team comprised of Dayot Upamecano and Kim Min-Jae at the back, Alphonso Davies and Konrad Laimer on the flanks, Joshua Kimmich and Aleksander Pavlović centrally, with Luis Díaz, Michael Olise, Nathaniel Brown and Harry Kane in attack. The players fit modestly well in these positions, but Stuttgart had plans.

Picture this — a Stuttgart side that were aggressive from minute one. Fast passing, lightning-quick reflexes and near-split-second decisions. This was the norm that they had set. Bayern were not merely the weaker side — they were being outclassed and outplayed by the away side who simply seemed to want the win more. Harry Kane was far too deep to be of immediate impact during the game. The attackers Díaz and Olise seemed checked out of from the first half — as though the game were yet to begin. They simply were not worried about how quickly they lost possession, or the fact that Stuttgart was recycling gained possession rapidly.

A monstrous performance from Kim and Manuel Neuer kept a clean sheet for the whole duration of the first half. The only goal came from Dayot Upamecano’s goal off a Kimmich set-piece. Bayern were simply taking too long to mesh into the game or develop the appropriate seriousness necessary. Not exactly a great first impression, but the second half changed matters significantly.

The only way to describe Bayern’s response to Stuttgart from the second half is to describe it as an onslaught of pacy attack that came out of seemingly nowhere and completely changed the trajectory.

At the 52nd, the game had leaned Stuttgart’s way suddenly. The visitors provided a befitting answer to Upamecano’s goal through a fantastic goal by Josha Vagnoman. After a series of mistakes by Bayern including a pass gone bad from goalscorer Upamecano, Vagnoman made it 1-1. This saw a complete change in attitude from Bayern.

The same side who were slow and erratic, were suddenly in perfect sync. Merely three minutes later, a disorganised moment from Stuttgart’s defense resulted in Olise scoring the second Bayern goal. Another three minutes in, a cross from Davies is accidentally converted by Vagnoman into a goal. In mere minutes following Vagnoman’s first goal, he had scored the second, but for the wrong team and changed the trajectory of the game. A simple slip on wet grass, yet so dramatic in the way it impacted the game.

By this point, Stuttgart were exhausted and could no longer contain Bayern. What could have easily been a nightmare at home for Bayern, ended up salvageable because they still had the time to react. With tougher oppositions, this kind of an approach from Bayern could cost dearly. Stuttgart simply had not done enough to convert their earlier dominance into a result. If the team were capable of adapting so effortlessly, why not do it earlier and bury the game? I guess we’ll never know.

Bayern has been using a lot of Spiderman material in their promos lately…

This Bayern side is certainly more fluid than they were last year.

If you were used to the suffocating press and half-space game, it might come as a surprise that Bayern are doing things differently — more direct vertical passing behind the press as opposed to powering past the opposition’s press. Kimmich in this setup, holds the master key. Putting aside his two assists tonight, you could see how he was moderating the passing, and in fact, held a 90+ percent in pass accuracy.

Nathaniel Brown is an interesting figure in this setup. He’s unlike the usual figures we have at the CAM position. A fast player who is great at passing the ball through the lanes but does not play a heavy 1v1 game like Musiala whose ball control and dribbling are central to his game. Brown has a better defensive profile too and it showed — he was one of the brighter spots along with Kim Min-jae in the first half. Speaking of the Korean defender, he was placed insanely high up multiple instances but was still defending exceptionally well.

When sloppy and dry like the first half, this Bayern constantly recycles possession and cannot progress in the final third. Wingers encountering opposition players would either cheaply lose the ball, or just back-pass instead of finding a way into the final third.

Hence, the fluidity of this tactical system is only of real use when the team is in sync. It reduces the need to power past a strong pressing side with pure stamina. Stuttgart may have given them 45 minutes to get a hang of things, but one cannot guarantee the same for big European sides. One can only hope the next time around, Bayern are on their toes from the very first minute.

I am unabashedly a huge fan of Ismael Saibari. The 25-year-old attacker was brilliant in his half-hour cameo. Taking the attacking midfield spot after Nathaniel Brown’s substitution, Saibari put his game intelligence on full display. The final 30 showed the most dominant version of Bayern and it was easy to see why.

Case in point, the two assists he provided. Saibari cuts in, gets past the Stuttgart player marking him, finds Pavlović who then finishes to make it 4-1. The final goal scored in additional time by Díaz, was also a Saibari product. A fantastic run from the Moroccan and a well-time pass to the Colombian winger was enough.

Saibari brings in a very different profile than Brown and Musiala, and one that is very necessary for Bayern. A player like him would serve the team extremely well against low-blocks. The other players have already begun to see how special a talent he is and it is only a matter of time before he starts winning big games for Bayern.