What Their Late Cup Win Tells Us About This Bayern Munich Season Ahead

The fact that the Bavarians needed a last-gasp winner by Harry Kane in the first round of DFB Cup play to win 3-2 against third-tier Wehen Wiesbaden on Wednesday, August 27, at the very least, should be reason for some alarm regarding the Bayern Munich season ahead.

We wrote last week about how the German record champions will have problems with squad depth, unless they reverse course and sign some more players, before the transfer window closes.

Coach Vincent Kompany, as if trying to test the validity of that argument, made six changes to his starting lineup compared to the 6-0 victory over RB Leipzig on the opening night of Bundesliga play.

Albeit, one of those alterations was forced on him, as Manuel Neuer is carrying a two-match Cup ban from last season’s sending off in the competition.

Beyond that, one of the other changes was that teenage sensation Lennart Karl made his first start in a competitive match for the club.

A Transfer Policy That Will Likely Backfire in This Bayern Munich Season

The advisory board of club president Herbert Hainer, are tying the hands of the men formally in charge of transfers, only allowing them to take players on loan, rather than to make permanent signings from this point forward.

Obviously, most other clubs would, if anything, prefer to sell players that may be of Bayern–level quality, at a high price, rather than to loan them out.

Karl and the other teenagers used to supplement the squad are bright young talents, no doubt about it, but they are not yet the finished products the Bavarians need.

Injury-Prone Squad

During the last two seasons, we have seen just how susceptible many of the players in the squad are to injuries. In fact, the team would likely have overcome Inter Milan in the quarterfinals of the Champions League last season if it weren’t for the long injury list before those games.

Ahead of this Bayern Munich season, Jamal Musiala, Alphonso Davies, and Hiroki Ito were all out with injuries, and they will likely miss the upcoming months as well.

For that reason alone, one can see why reinforcements would be necessary.

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What Wednesday Night’s Game Tells Us About the Future

First and foremost, it tells us that this Bayern Munich season will be a difficult one. Given how many matches the term will have, it will not allow Kompany to make wholesale changes. That is a worrying prospect indeed.

The fact that the team let a 2-0 second-half lead slip away against a Third Division opponent, no less, really shows that this squad are not equipped to compete credibly for three major trophies.

Doing so is always the goal at Bayern Munich, but that is simply not possible with this small group of players.

Despite ultimately winning the game against Wiesbaden in added time, Bayern must take Wednesday’s result as a warning. It was once again proof that the team must rediscover its killer instinct, which is something that has to be addressed regardless of transfer policy as well.

Main Photo

Credit: IMAGO / Passion2Press

Recording Date: 27.08.2025