In the ongoing debate about Bayern Munich’s most indispensable attacker, the numbers leave little room for argument: Serge Gnabry is currently unstoppable. With another clinical performance against Union Berlin, the winger has put head coach Julian Nagelsmann and assistant Pep Guardiola in a tricky position regarding the selection of their starting XI. Gnabry’s latest goal took his season tally to 12 in just 18 appearances, a ratio that puts him ahead of both Jamal Musiala and the injured Leroy Sané. His ability to combine pace, dribbling and clinical finishing has made him the perfect fit for Bayern’s high-press system, and teammates are quick to credit his work rate off the ball as well. For Nagelsmann, the challenge is twofold: first, to manage the expectations of a fan base that now sees Gnabry as indispensable; and second, to ensure that the 27-year-old remains sharp without burning out before the crucial Champions League knockouts. With Thomas Müller and Kingsley Coman also pushing for starts, the coaching staff faces a welcome yet demanding selection headache. In the short term, Gnabry’s form gives Bayern an enviable luxury. In the long term, it underscores the club’s ongoing quest to balance home-grown talent with world-class imports. For now, though, the statistics speak for themselves: when Serge Gnabry is on the pitch, goals follow, and rivals take notice

For long spells of the contest, the 23-year-old remained largely invisible. He squandered two promising counter-attacking opportunities and, according to Opta, completed only ten touches—a statistic that underlines his limited influence. One of those touches, a miscontrolled pass in the 62nd minute, underscored the fact that Musiala is still some way from full sharpness. With 10 touches, he still had the chance to net the decisive 3-1 late on and remove the proverbial fly in the ointment of Bayern’s victory. “Ultimately, we had a few chances we should have taken,” Gnaby noted. “We could have managed the final minutes better and finished them off.” 

In truth, Bayern’s failure to convert their expected goals tally of 2.92 cannot be laid solely at Musiala’s door. Yet the statistics underline a wider issue: right now, he lacks the credentials to influence games during the decisive final minutes. 

Such palpable uncertainty is entirely normal after several weeks of setbacks, and sporting director Max Eberl acknowledged as much before the squad’s departure for Madrid. “It’s not an injury that can be rehabilitated in passing,” he explained, adding: “There’s a lot of physicality involved, but the soul and psyche are involved too.” He also addressed the setbacks since Musiala’s January comeback, most recently against Atalanta Bergamo. “Adhesions in the ankle” had been the issue—a delicate matter, because, as Eberl put it, “It’s not all pristine and unblemished, but also surgically treated and fragile.”

Consequently, the club’s effort to give Musiala every chance to regain his former sharpness is entirely understandable. “He has, of course, had a difficult time. He needs the self-confidence,” said Lothar Matthäus on Tuesday in his capacity as a Sky Austria pundit. Without match rhythm, he “cannot possibly be in the right condition.” At the same time, however, the record-breaking international also conceded: “For Musiala, this appearance on the pitch came too soon in terms of his form, but perhaps you need these games to feel important to the team again on the pitch, to feel that the manager has faith in you.”