Tuchel wants better Bayern against Union Berlin
Thomas Tuchel wants his Bayern Munich team to “take it up a notch” when it faces Bundesliga struggler Union Berlin in its next match.
Bayern is unbeaten in all 12 of its league matches this season and sits two points off leader Bayer Leverkusen.
It faces a Union side which recently hired new manager Nenad Bjelica and finds itself in the relegation zone, having lost nine of its past 10 games.
Tuchel called for a reaction from his players after Bayern’s midweek 0-0 draw with Copenhagen in the UEFA Champions League.
“They’ve changed the formation to a 4-1-4-1 (Union),” Tuchel said.
“You can’t read too much into their game (1-1 draw against Braga) because there was an early red card. We’ll also look at games involving the clubs he’s coached previously.
“We have to concentrate on ourselves and do things better. We want to take it up a notch. The main attention is on us.”
Bayern left-back Alphonso Davies has recently been linked with a move away from the club.
Tuchel lauded the Canada international, highlighting him as a “key player” for the German champion.
“He’s our player and an absolutely key player,” Tuchel added.
“He knows how highly we value him. For me, how long the player is under contract doesn’t change anything.
“He’s playing regularly at the highest level. I trust the management. He’s still a very young player, which we often forget. He has room for improvement in every area, but all at an extremely high level.”
Midfielder Leon Goretzka has previously featured as a centre-back and Tuchel talked up the player’s versatility.
He said: “You can’t overstate it. We moved Leon from the centre of midfield to centre-back in the final training session. He did it very well. His best position is when he can use his running strength between the boxes.
“He’s had very good performances in midfield and that’s still where we see him. Every time he’s played at centre-back, he’s played well.”
Bayern revealed also that Senegalese full-back Bouna Sarr is expected to miss several months of action having undergone successful surgery after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during training.
