Thomas Tuchel criticised Dayot Upamecano’s errors after Bayern Munich’s dismal performance in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
The French defender had a nightmare night as Pep Guardiola’s squad advanced to the Champions League semi-finals with a 3-0 victory in the first leg.
Upamecano had a dreadful game, but his most significant error was giving the ball away to Jack Grealish, allowing a move that led to Bernardo Silva’s second goal.
Tuchel did not hesitate to analyse what transpired after the game and spoke frankly about Upamecano’s errors in front of the press microphones.
“He made too many mistakes,” said the new Bayern Munich.
“Today he had two or three situations where he lacked a bit of concentration.” Although he hastened to add that “we are not angry with him.”
“He’s still young,” said the German before making a relentless observation.
“But in a game at this level, against a team like Manchester City, you have to play without individual mistakes. Especially if you want to get results.”
Liverpool’s Konate compared with Bayern’s Upamecano
It is no secret that Liverpool wanted Upamecano back in 2021, with Jurgen Klopp apparently identifying the France international as Virgil van Dijk’s ‘natural partner’ (The Mirror).
Instead, Konate would arrive months after Bayern sealed a £37 million deal for Klopp’s top target (Upamecano).
While lingering injuries have limited Konate’s impact recently – the Paris-born 23-year-old has been sorely missed in Liverpool’s haphazard defence – the impression is that one Red Bull graduate has left another in his wake during the previous 18 months or so.
It’s difficult to envisage Konate putting in the kind of error-prone showing Upamecano did at the Etihad Stadium.
When fit, the 23-year-old has been Liverpool’s standout center-back this season.
Overall, he has been one of their most consistent performers.
“Upemecano plays ahead of Konate for France,” a clearly befuddled Jamie Carragher wrote on Twitter following the former’s latest high-profile blunder.
“(His) status has been shattered,” L’Equipe say, handing Upamecano a woeful rating of 2/10 in midweek.
“His second half looked like a nightmare. One of those that marks a career. He lost the ball in the lead up to the second goal in the 70th minute. And his positioning for the third is, at best, uncertain.”
Konate may have felt like a second-choice or a back-up alternative at the time. With hindsight, it appears that Liverpool did indeed win the transfer battle.
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