How will Hansi Flick cope without Benjamin Pavard and Jerome Boateng when Bayern Munich face Paderborn?
With Benjamin Pavard and Jerome Boateng both picking up their fifth yellow cards of the season on Matchday 22, Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick faces something of a rethink for his defence against Paderborn on Friday night.
bundesliga.com assesses the options Flick has to cover the suspensions of two of his defenders in the Matchday 23 curtain-raiser…
With David Alaba already deputising at the heart of the Bayern defence, Flick's most logical choice would be to partner the Austrian all-rounder up with another left-footer in the fit-again Lucas Hernandez.
Bayern’s interim coach said prior to the Cologne game he would have no qualms in doing so: "At the end of the day, it makes no difference if you have three right-footers or three left-footers in your defence."
However, there is surely a case to be made that Alaba - who has spent the majority of his career at left-back - and Hernandez - who won the 2018 FIFA World Cup in the role - is a weaker hand than Pavard-Boateng - both centre-backs first, and full-backs second.
The main consideration Flick could have with the Frenchman, on the other hand, regards his fitness.
Having made his first two appearances in a Bayern shirt since joining from Atletico Madrid in the summer at the heart of their defence, Hernandez would be the logical choice to step into Boateng's boots, but he has been out of action since October with an ankle ligament tear and while he has made two substitute appearances recently, Flick will not want to rush his return to full action and risk a relapse.
The World Cup winner was given a testing 45 minutes by Cologne on Matchday 22, with Manuel Neuer in inspirational form to deny the Billy Goats an unlikely comeback from 3-0 down at half-time, and should Flick feel he is not yet ready to start a game, a few alternative options could come under consideration.
Joshua Kimmich has shown his versatility by playing at full-back and in his preferred defensive midfield role down the years. He also moonlighted in central defence 17 times under Pep Guardiola in 2015/16, so could plausibly partner Alaba against Paderborn - especially if he’s as good a centre-half as the former Bayern coach claims.
"Kimmich is one of the best centre-backs in the world," Guardiola once said of Bayern's ultra-malleable defensive specialist. "He’s got absolutely everything,"
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Whether Kimmich continues in midfield or reverts to right-back, Real Madrid loanee Alvaro Odriozola could be the man to benefit on the right-hand side of the defence. The 24-year-old made his Bayern debut – albeit briefly – in the DFB Cup win over Hoffenheim, as a replacement for Boateng.
The enforced chopping and changing may see 19-year-old Lukas Mai called up to at least the matchday squad for the 12th time this season. The Germany U19 international made two league appearances from the bench under Jupp Heynckes with the league title already wrapped up late in 2017/18, but has spent the majority of the current campaign with the reserves in the third tier, and is still awaiting his first Bundesliga start.
Thinking outside of the box, a move to a back three is not beyond the realms of possibility. Kimmich could sit in-between Hernandez and Alaba in an almost sweeper role, enabling Odriozola or even Serge Gnabry to take up position on the right, with Alphonso Davies on the opposite flank.
Although a tactical curve-ball for a coach who has not once strayed from his preferred back four, it would certainly broaden Flick's options heading into the business end of the season, with Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League and DFB Cup to juggle.
That is when Flick will hope to be able to count again on Javi Martinez, who is back in training and close to making a comeback, and Niklas Süle, who tore his ACL in October.
Süle is not an option right now, but there was some good news from the Säbener Straße training centre this week, with the 24-year-old returning to light training.
"After four months of spending every day in the treatment room, following the same routine, it was fantastic to get out there again, do some jogging, and smell the grass," Süle told FCB.tv. "The time had come for me to take the next step."
Although Süle still has a few months of rehabilitation ahead, Flick may still get to count on him in the closing stages of the season, when his defensive selection headache could be caused by abundance rather than absence.
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