Bayern Munich had to dig hard for their measly win over minnows Darmstadt, relegating their opponents in the process. The Bavarians started with an unusual lineup in their first match after winning the Bundesliga title, against bottom club Darmstadt, in a meaningless encounter.
Juan Bernat scored the only goal of the contest before third choice goalkeeper Tom Starke turned out to be an unlikely hero for the Bavarians as he saved a penalty to help his side clinch all three points. Here are the player ratings from their edgy win over the bottom club Darmstadt.
Tom Starke(10/10): Just before the kickoff, Bayern’s official twitter handle, tweeted about Sven Ulreich’s injury, meaning third choice Tom Starke had the opportunity to start the game due to the injuries of their top two goalkeepers. It was only his sixth Bundesliga appearance in his five seasons with the club but by far his best performance ever.
The 36-year old made a string of fine saves throughout the game, including the effort by Felix Platte on the half hour mark. With just four minutes remaining, Darmstadt were handed a penalty and a glittering opportunity to level the scoresheet.
However, Starke on was hand to save the penalty and therefore, preserve his well-earned clean sheet.
Rafinha(8/10): Philip Lahm was rested for the meaningless encounter as Rafinha featured as a right back for Bayern. The Brazilian burst forward with pace at every opportunity and completely shredded the opposition defence.
Jerome Boateng(7.5/10): A decent game for the German International, who remained solid throughout the game. Missed a few opportunities to score a goal.
David Alaba(8/10): A great performance once again from the Austrian International who was used as a centre-back in the absence of Javi Martinez. He was pretty alert in defending Darmstadt as made quite a lot of interceptions, proving why he’s one of Bayern’s best assets.
Juan Bernat(8.5/10): From being a hero for Bayern, Juan Bernat almost turned out to be the villain at the end as his clumsy challenge resulted in a penalty for Darmstadt just four minutes from time. Overall, the Spanish wingback played one of his best games for Bayern.
Renato Sanches(7/10): Finally got to play his first full ninety minutes as a Bayern player. However, the Portuguese golden boy was clumsy and disjointed in the midfield.
He often ran into the opposition thanks to some poor touches, or at times, caught off-guard with the ball. The 19-year-old is yet to provide a goal nor an assist for his new side so far, in a pretty tough debut season in the Bundesliga.
Joshua Kimmich(8.5/10): An opposite to his midfield partner Renato Sanches, Kimmich prevailed once again deputising the retiring Xabi Alonso. He offered calm and assurance in the middle and even provided a threat in the offensive department, with his accurate set piece deliveries. A solid performance from the German wunderkind.
Douglas Costa(7.5/10): Showed glimpses of his brilliance at times, including a strong left-footed shot on 35th minute which was just wide of the target. But overall, it was a terrible outing for Douglas Costa, whose future in Bayern looks very insecure.
Thomas Muller(8/10): Constantly provided space for his teammates and for himself as well. The German International made a lot of scoring opportunities for his side as well.
Franck Ribery(8.5/10): Caused havoc on the left flanks and his link up play with Muller and Bernat was particularly good. Registered his 11th assist of the season. Was extremely unlucky not to score a goal himself at the end, as he saw both his effort tipped out wide by goalkeeper Esser.
Robert Lewandowski(7.5/10): Couldn’t capitalise on his fiery performance against Wolfsburg as he was often denied by Michael Esser in the Darmstadt goal. Interestingly though, Robert Lewandowski has scored two more goals on his own than the entire Darmstadt team have managed all season.
