After a hard-fought win over Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur will brace themselves for arguably their toughest test yet as they welcome Bayern Munich in north London.
The Bavarians are, without a doubt, one of the most dangerous sides in Europe and are capable of further damaging Spurs’ season. Therefore, the Premier League giants will need to be extra careful. And in this article, we will talk about three Bayern Munich players Tottenham has to find a way to cope with in this midweek encounter at North London.
Robert Lewandowski
Robert Lewandowski is the greatest threat for Tottenham Hotspur coming into this fixture. The Bayern Munich hitman has been in sensational form this season, netting ten goals in just six league matches. He also scored in the previous Champions League game against Crvena Zvezda.
Lewandowski’s lethal finishing in front of goal coupled with his work-rate and intelligent movements in the final third are to sure cause some trouble for the likes of Jan Vertonghen and Davinson Sanchez. Hence, Mauricio Pochettino must come up with a definite plan to stop the Polish international from scoring this week.
Philippe Coutinho
Isolating Lewandowski’s support in the creative department is an excellent way to nullify the forward. And that’s where Philippe Coutinho comes into the fray.
The playmaker, on loan from Barcelona, is gradually improving his game after joining Bayern in the summer. He was notably rested in their win over Paderborn last weekend and is almost a guaranteed starter against Spurs. He has already played against the Lilywhites many times before, during his spell at Liverpool.
His experience in England gives him the upper hand over other Bayern attacker. As for Spurs, they will need to be careful of the Brazilian’s subtle movements and quick build-up play with the likes of Ivan Perisic and Thiago Alcantara.
Coutinho will be the creator-in-chief for Bayern and Tottenham must stop him if they are to salvage anything from this game.
Joshua Kimmich
By far the most important player in the Bayern Munich camp, aside from Lewandowski, Joshua Kimmich has become a sort of a midfield general after being shifted into a number six by Niko Kovac earlier this season. And the German international has responded well to the positional change.
Indeed, Kimmich is now the anchorman in the Bayern midfield. His composure on the ball, coupled with his work-rate and ball distribution has allowed more freedom for the likes of Thiago and Coutinho.
Tottenham, in that regard, will need to isolate the former Stuttgart starlet and devoid him of any passing options. They could do so by implementing a leeway-oriented pressing scheme.
