{"id":10731,"date":"2011-12-11T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-12-11T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/12\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/"},"modified":"2011-12-11T08:00:00","modified_gmt":"2011-12-11T08:00:00","slug":"the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"The stats that show Bayern Munich’s Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world"},"content":{"rendered":"

ANALYSIS<\/strong>
By Clark Whitney | German Football Editor<\/p>\n

A month ago, Bayern Munich\u2019s defence was impenetrable. Having conceded just four goals in 18 games, keeping clean sheets against the likes of Manchester City, Villarreal, Schalke and Bayer Leverkusen in the process, the Bavarians\u2019 backline had apparently changed from laughably poor to the best in the world over the summer.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
SCHWEINSTEIGER
– DEFENSIVE TALISMAN –
<\/span><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n

\"\"<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n

\u00a0BAYERN’S RECORD BEFORE NOV 2
<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n
GAMES PLAYED
GOALS CONCEDED
AV. GOALS CONCEDED PER GAME
GAMES WON
WIN PERCENTAGE
CLEAN SHEETS
<\/span><\/strong><\/td>\n		18
4
0.22
14
77.8%
15
<\/span><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
BAYERN’S RECORD AFTER NOV 2<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n
GAMES PLAYED
GOALS CONCEDED
AV. GOALS CONCEDED PER GAME
GAMES WON
WIN PERCENTAGE
CLEAN SHEETS<\/span><\/strong><\/td>\n		6
9
1.50
3
50.0%
0<\/span><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

It was too good to be true.<\/p>\n

And indeed, over the last month, Bayern\u2019s back-four, with any combination of players, has been found to be quite ordinary. In their last six games, they have failed to keep a clean sheet, conceding nine goals in the process.<\/p>\n

All the difference comes down to one man: Bastian Schweinsteiger. With the vice-captain manning the defensive midfield, Bayern held their opponents scoreless in 15 out of 18 games, including a run of 1147 minutes without conceding. And then, on November 2, he was stretchered off the pitch against Napoli following a brutal collision with Gokhan Inler. The diagnosis: a broken collarbone, with a return before the winter break seriously in doubt.<\/p>\n

In that match Bayern had a preview of the struggles that were to come, as Federico Fernandez slimmed the German giants\u2019 3-0 lead to 3-2, and the Bundesliga side only narrowly held on for the three points. Days later, Bayern conceded to recently-promoted Augsburg – who as the German top flight\u2019s lowest-ranked team also have the second-worst attacking record – and by then it was quite clear: the weeks to come before Christmas would be very tricky.<\/p>\n

Without Schweinsteiger, no longer are the Bavarian giants being mentioned in the same sentence as Barcelona and Real Madrid, sides whom they were compared to not long ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
TOP DEFENSIVE RECORDS*
<\/span><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n
Club<\/span><\/strong>
Barcelona
Bayern Munich
<\/strong>Real Madrid<\/span><\/td>\n		Conceded\/Games
<\/span><\/strong>16\/26
16\/25
20\/23<\/span>
<\/span><\/strong><\/td>\n		Avg<\/strong><\/span>
0.62
0.64
0.87<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
*Minimum 20 competitive games played<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

For Bayern, things just aren\u2019t the same in midfield – and by extension, in defence – in the absence of their vice-captain. Before his injury, the Germany international simplified work for his team-mates: because of his impeccable positional instincts and immense ball-winning and possession-maintaining qualities, the centre-backs were very rarely left to defend against an attacking player making a direct dribble towards goal.<\/p>\n

Instead, Holger Badstuber and Daniel van Buyten typically nodded away wishful long balls, chased down through passes into the corners, and occasionally stepped up to halt a harried opponent bursting through the midfield. To their credit, the pair have been quick to react. But when put under more pressure and forced to defend against a composed, speedy attack, they have been found lacking.<\/p>\n

To their good fortune, Bayern have sufficient fire-power in attack and have largely managed to out-score their opponents in Schweinsteiger’s absence. But as they learned in last season\u2019s round of 16 tie with Inter, that is not enough. And as the Serie A side (and later Schalke) also discovered, a proper defence is necessary to contend in the latter stages of the Champions League. If they are to win titles this season, Schweinsteiger is the key. For the Bayern faithful, his return cannot come soon enough.<\/p>\n

Follow Clark Whitney on\u00a0\"\"<\/em><\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ANALYSIS By Clark Whitney | German Football Editor A month ago, Bayern Munich\u2019s defence was impenetrable. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\nThe stats that show Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"The stats that show Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world - Ghanamma.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"ANALYSIS By Clark Whitney | German Football Editor A month ago, Bayern Munich\u2019s defence was impenetrable.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ghanamma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ghanamma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\",\"@id\":\"\"},\"headline\":\"The stats that show Bayern Munich’s Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-12-11T08:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/\"},\"wordCount\":562,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/\",\"name\":\"The stats that show Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world - Ghanamma.com\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-12-11T08:00:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/\",\"name\":\"Ghanamma.com\",\"description\":\"News In Ghana - Latest Ghana News Headlines\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The stats that show Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world - Ghanamma.com","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"The stats that show Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world - Ghanamma.com","twitter_description":"ANALYSIS By Clark Whitney | German Football Editor A month ago, Bayern Munich\u2019s defence was impenetrable.","twitter_image":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg","twitter_creator":"@ghanamma","twitter_site":"@ghanamma","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/"},"author":{"name":"","@id":""},"headline":"The stats that show Bayern Munich’s Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world","datePublished":"2011-12-11T08:00:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/"},"wordCount":562,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/","url":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/","name":"The stats that show Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger is the most influential defensive player in the world - Ghanamma.com","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg","datePublished":"2011-12-11T08:00:00+00:00","author":{"@id":""},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/12\/11\/the-stats-that-show-bayern-munichs-bastian-schweinsteiger-is-the-most-influential-defensive-player-in-the-world\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/e878148507_hp.jpg"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/","name":"Ghanamma.com","description":"News In Ghana - Latest Ghana News Headlines","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10731"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10731\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}