An inspired hattrick from Dani Olmo handed RB Leipzig a deserved 3-0 win over Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena to take the Supercup in the Bundesliga curtain-raiser. The euphoria surrounding Harry Kane’s transfer was quickly dampened as the Saxon cup holders went into a 2-0 half-time lead. Bayern were not at their sharpest going forward and a second half penalty from Olmo sealed a second successive win against the Rekordmeister at the Allianz Arena. Here are five takeaways from Saturday’s season opener…
1- Has Leipzig’s inferiority complex gone?
You wait years for a first win over Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena and then two come along in quick succession. Leipzig’s 3-1 win over the Rekordmeister on matchday 33 of last season was their first since their promotion to the Bundesliga and only their second overall in their history. Having proved they can be the Bavarian’s equal once, they did it once more in tonight’s Supercup and inflicted a second consecutive loss on Thomas Tuchel’s champions.
Have RB Leipzig lost their inferiority complex that has kept them in Bayern’s shadow over the past few seasons? If so, we can perhaps expect the Roten Bullen to be a genuine title contender this season alongside Borussia Dortmund.
2- Does Janis Blaswich deserve to hold onto the number one jersey?
Marco Rose is going to face big dilemma when club captain Peter Gulacsi returns to action following his ten month injury layoff. The Hungarian sustained an anterior cruciate ligament tear in his right knee in the Champions League tie with Celtic last October, and has been deputised ever since by understudy Janis Blaswich.
The 32-year-old performed admirably last season and had another excellent game tonight in the Supercup. Dropping him in favour of the former number one would be cruel, but then again, that is the life of a number two. Should Leipzig go back to Gulacsi or stick with Blaswich?
3- Is the number 6 still an issue for Bayer?
Thomas Tuchel has made no secret of his desire for a new number six for his midfield with his belief that none of his current options fulfil the role in quite the natural way he would like. Tonight saw an initial pairing of Konrad Laimer and Joshua Kimmich (as in most of pre-season), but the 3-0 defeat will give the coach further ammunition in his quest to persuade the board a new specialist number six is required.
4- No dream start for Harry Kane
Having only landed in Munich last night and completed his medical and contract signing, Harry Kane finally became a Bayern player after a long drawn out negotiation process. The England captain and Bayern’s record signing was straight onto the Bayern bench for the Supercup clash and was introduced after 63 minutes. His impact was minimal as Bayern were already edging to defeat, but there will be plenty of opportunity for him to show his stuff. Watch out Werder Bremen next Friday!
5- Dani Olmo could be Leipzig’s best signing of them all
It is hard to argue against RB Leipzig having the best transfer window thus far with sporting director Max Eberl providing Marco Rose with a host of talented players to replace the outgoing Christopher Nkunku, Josko Gvardiol and Domonik Szoboszlai. However, persuading Spaniard Dani Olmo to remain at the club last season with rumours linking him with a return to Barcelona could prove to be the most important piece of business done of late.
His match-winning hattrick saw him grab the limelight away from Harry Kane’s debut at the Allianz Arena. His second goal (if intentional) was a piece of sublime genius and his quality shone throughout. A big season could be on the cards if tonight is anything to go by.
