Bayern Munich 1-1 Schalke: Matip Debut Goal Cancels Early Van Buyten Strike

Schalke earned their third consecutive draw in league play, whereas Bayern "lost" 1-1.

Nov 7, 2009 4:30:28 PM

Champions League: Bayern Munich - Girondins Bordeaux, Butt (Bongarts/Getty Images)

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Champions League: Bayern Munich - Girondins Bordeaux, Butt (Bongarts/Getty Images)

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Louis Van Gaal welcomed back defender Daniel van Buyten and midfielder Thomas Mueller, both of whom were suspended for Tuesday's 2-0 defeat to Bordeaux. In somewhat of a surprising move, Holger Badstuber was moved to the left fullback position in place of Edson Braafheid. In place of Badstuber, Martin Demichelis made his return in central defense.

Felix Magath also shuffled his lineup, giving 18-year-old Joel Matip his first Bundesliga cap in central midfield, and sliding Christoph Moritz over to the left side. At the back, Lukas Schmitz was slotted in on the left side, moving Heiko Westermann to the centre and Carlos Zambrano to the bench. Playmaker Lewis Holtby was sacrificed in favor of a three-man front line consisting of Vicente Sanchez, Kevin Kuranyi and Jefferson Farfan.

Schalke easily came out the more composed side, and forced Bayern to resort to rather rash challenges. Kurayi was first to breach the hosts' defense after beating Demichelis to a long ball. The Argentine defender missed his challenge, but Kuranyi wasted a one-on-one chance by lofting in a shot that Hans-Joerg Butt did well to save.

The visitors remained quick to exploit their hosts' weaknesses, using superior width to catch Bayern out of position on the break. Four minutes after Kuranyi's chance, Vicente Sanchez broke into free space on the left and crossed to a wide open Farfan, but his service was just a bit too high for the Peruvian to control.

After a quarter hour, Bayern settled and began to win the midfield battle. In the 16th minute, Badstuber surprised everyone by racing behind the Schalke defense to receive a clever pass, but Farfan recovered well to force a corner. Thomas Mueller's header from the resulting corner had plenty of power, but missed just over the bar.

In response to Bayern's resurgence, Farfan and Sanchez dropped back to defend the flanks, allowing their midfield colleagues to focus on combating against the centre of Bayern's narrow setup. The strategy forked to a point, but Schalke looked particularly susceptible from set pieces, which they gave away in excess.

Bayern finally broke through in the 31st minute thanks to a touch of luck. Badstuber lofted in a free kick that Miroslav Klose was able to meet with his head, but his effort was going well off target as it deflected off Kuranyi and to the other side of goal. Daniel van Buyten was first to the ball, and tapped in to put Bayern ahead.

Bayern continued to look the more dangerous team, but Schalke earned a free kick two minutes before the half, and from it struck the equalizer. Lukas Schmitz curled in a free kick that was slightly too high for Mueller, but debutant Matip rose to nod it in.

Furious for having conceded, Bayern came back and should have scored from another free kick, but Marcelo Bordon was somehow able to clear Van Buyten's volley, and the score remained 1-1 at the half.

Both sides made a single change at the break: for Bayern, Arjen Robben replaced Luca Toni, and for Schalke, Carlos Zambrano came on for Benedikt Hoewedes.

After his team showed few signs of attacking force in the opening minutes, Magath further bolstered his defense by bringing in Vasilis Pliatsikas for Sanchez.

The game, which had always been phisical, became downright nasty following several rash challenges. It all began when Robben scampered up the right side and was clipped from behind by Schmitz. The Dutchman was up immediately and knocked over his transgressor. Afterward, the two teams traded blows that proved costly for both sides. In the 64th minute, Badstuber was forced to withdraw, and Hamit Altintop came in as a substitute, moving Lahm to the left side of defense. For Schalke, Rafinha was forced off, and Mineiro came on as his replacement.

Although Bayern were easily the more dominant team, the hosts struggled to finish. Robben made multiple dangerous moves into the Schalke penalty area, but there was no presence in the box for Bayern.

At the other end, Schmitz managed to slip inside along the byline, but Butt did well to block his shot, which came in at a very difficult angle.

With a quarter hour to go, Bayern rolled the dice a final time as Mario Gomez came on for the rather ineffective Klose. Gomez was afforded little space, but had immediate impact when he superbly set up Anatoliy Tymoshchuk, but the Ukranian midfielder missed wide from the edge of the box.

Over the final 15 minutes of normal time, Bayern had Schalke pinned in their own half, but a combination of resolute defending and ineffectual passing ensured a 1-1 draw. Robben was the only man capable of piercing through Schalke's defense, but everytime he tried a 1-2, his teammates were utterly incapable of providing decent service.

The result means that Schalke remain fourth, while Bayern slip to eighth following Mainz's win over Nuernberg.

Clark Whitney, Goal.com

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