At the beginning of the season, many people had a wait-and-see attitude towards Kompany's coaching of Bayern. However, Kompany's 4231 formation quickly proved its effectiveness as Bayern won back-to-back matches in the league and the Champions League, and recently scored 20 goals in three matches in a fierce attack that caught people's eyes. Despite the limited competitiveness of their opponents, Kompany's Bayern is clearly more efficient and stable compared to the Tuchel-era team, which has even been known to turn the ball over.
Kane, Musiala and other attackers in the new formation like a fish out of water, the performance of the new Oulisse is even more amazing, directly squeezed Sane to the bench. The team's attack in the midfield is smooth, and the combination of side and center is excellent. Despite the lack of players in the midfield due to injuries, the midfield pairing of Kimmich and Lemmerer still shows strong blocking and attacking organization ability.
Leverkusen has retained its starting roster from last season and made additions. The attacking creativity of Wiltz and the wingback performances of Frimpong and Grimaldo have been outstanding, but on the defensive end, the team has conceded goals in each of their four league matches in the new season, and have struggled against the likes of Borussia Monchengladbach and Wolfsburg, as well as being shut out at home by Red Bull Leipzig in a come-from-behind victory.
Leverkusen's wingbacks are strong in attack and weak in defense, and are often beaten behind by the opponent's side. The three center backs are excellent in frontal interception, but the lack of tightness in staring in the face of crosses has become a problem that Alonso needs to solve. Boniface's all-round performance and Wiltz's cooperation make Leverkusen's offense quite threatening, but in defense, the team needs to strengthen.
Bayern's 4231 formation allowed their midfield stars to play like fish out of water, while Leverkusen, apart from Wiltz and Boniface, were mostly routine and lacked creativity. Bayern's overall performance this season has been aggressive and proactive, in stark contrast to last season's slow footwork in the center and back.
Leverkusen's wingbacks are weak in attacking and defending, making the pressure on their defense drastically increase when they face the onslaught of Gnabry and Ollesey. Frequent pullbacks in midfield will reduce the number of counter-attackers, and errors in ball movement from center back are more likely to be self-defeating under Bayern's high press.
To summarize, the match between Bayern and Leverkusen will be a battle of offensive firepower, and Kompany's 4231 innovation and Leverkusen's wing play will be an exciting collision. Bayern's aggressiveness and Leverkusen's defensive problems may become the key to decide the direction of the game.
