Welcome to the FC Bayern Campus Round Up, where the matches of Bayern Munich’s U-23, U-19, and U-17 squads are recapped, lineups are provided, and match highlights are hyperlinked above their respective scorelines. The U-19’s match was streamed live on YouTube, so anyone — even without a VPN — can watch it here. Remember, highlights for each match can be watched for free once you create an account on Bayern’s website.

Information on the matches of the U-23s, U-19s, and U-17s is provided by the official FC Bayern website here, here, and here. The results of the U-14, U-15, and U-16 teams can be found here.If one wishes to learn more about the format of the U-17 and U-19 youth leagues and what is atstake, more info can be found here. Without further ado, here is the roundup:

You read that right. Bayern II’s match against TSV Landsberg ended in a ridiculous 5-5 draw—a 10-goal thriller that might at first seem fun. But look a little closer past the result, and it is clear how terribly Bayern threw this game away.

Bayern traveled to the bottom-placed team in the Regionalliga Bayern, who had won just one match all season, and looked to improve on a recent run of draws. Despite boasting a seven-game unbeaten streak heading into the match and a recent morale-boosting victory against 1859+1 Munich, the team had also won just three of those seven matches, and the victory over Bayern’s city rivals was their only win in the last four matches. A trip to the league’s current worst team seemed to be just what they needed.

Early on, it seemed like that would be the case, too. The team was not very good in the first half, but they did not need to be, seeing a set piece bounce fortuitously for Bastian Assomo to score the first, followed by a cross from far out by Richard Ajayi that was deflected into the net by a Landsberg defender.

From that point, Bayern sat back and struck again and again through counters. First, Degraf scored via a great solo effort in the 27th minute; then, Assomo was sent through to score the fourth; and finally, substitute Matouš Srb counterattacked to win a penalty for striker Anton Heinz, who bagged the fifth goal. All the while, Landsberg continued to create chances by overloading the wings and swinging in crosses. Still, by the 74th minute, Heinz had fired Bayern into a 5-2 lead, and one thought that surely, surely things wouldn’t go wrong.

And then it all went wrong.

Bayern’s defense fell back and completely fell apart. It was utter chaos for the last 15 minutes, with the home team belatedly realizing that they did not need to overload the wings or advance up the field; all they had to do was launch balls into the box from anywhere to cause danger. Bayern’s box was constantly overloaded as attackers outnumbered defenders, the midfielders failed to track back, runners were repeatedly left free at the back post, and nobody took charge to clear the ball convincingly. One would not know this side is coached by an extraordinary former center-back in Dante, because they did everything wrong in their attempts to defend the home team’s pressure. It was horrible to watch.

In the final 15 minutes, Bayern’s 5-2 lead was not only whittled down and eventually canceled entirely, but Landsberg really should have scored more. Time and again they threatened Bayern and should have netted at least six goals during that span. Bayern was lucky to escape with a point.

Ultimately, the game ended 5-5, and Bayern added another draw to the list. With 21 points after 15 games, Bayern is far from either the relegation zone or the promotion spot. The team’s form iscurrently on a downward slope after the historic win over 1859+1, and it is disappointing to see recent progress erode, but there is no danger of anything truly serious happening. Next up for most of the team is the U-19’s midweek fixture against Atlético Madrid’s U-19s.

This was a much more successful execution of the game plan than what the U-23s attempted in their match against a much better opponent. This was the second encounter between Stuttgart and Bayern this U-19 season, with the Bavarians’ home game against Die Schwäben ending in Stuttgart humiliating Bayern 6-1. A large part of that victory stemmed from the way Stuttgart took their early chances and then tore Bayern apart with sleek football as the match wore on.

This match was something of a reversal. Stuttgart could—and probably should—have gone in front, but goalkeeper David Podar-Stiube made a phenomenal save from very close range. Bayern, in turn, capitalized on their early chance to take the lead: makeshift left-back Xavier Pucci played a jaw-droppingly gorgeous pass down the wing to forward Frank Egwuatu, who held off a defender to slot the ball home. Stuttgart could have equalized with another gilt-edged chance, but hit the woodwork instead. Bayern did well to weather the resulting storm, calmed the match down, and eventually doubled their lead through a breakaway from star striker Philipp von Taube. A mistake in the VfB defense then gifted Bayern a third. The 3-0 halftime lead was probably bigger than they deserved based on run of play, but the Bavarians earned their advantage through sheer fight.

Stuttgart came out of the second half firing on all cylinders, missing more chances, getting a goal disallowed, and even missing a penalty as Podiar-Stiube proved impossible to beat. Eventually, they broke through in the 81st minute to cut the deficit to 3-1, but by then it was too late. A resolute defensive performance and competent counterattacking saw the Bavarians come out on top.

There are just three matches left for Bayern’s U-19s before Phase 1 ends and the winter break begins. This victory extends Bayern’s lead to four points over second-place Stuttgart and seven points ahead of 1859+1 in third, which essentially guarantees a spot in the higher division for Phase 2. Next up, as mentioned, is the clash against Atlético’s U-19s in the Youth League.

It is pretty ridiculous that this game ended just 2-1 for Bayern, as it makes the scoreline look much closer than it actually was. In truth, Bayern was dominant throughout this derby against city rivals, and though the spirited hosts created a few chances, Bayern dominated possession and generated by far the better opportunities. Poor finishing was the only thing holding them back. Striker Florian Krasniqi put Bayern ahead with a clinical finish after rounding the goalkeeper, but the hosts equalized on the stroke of halftime to erase that advantage.

The rest of the game consisted of Bayern trapping their opponents in their own half and attempting to break them down. Several gilt-edged chances and open-goal misses later, the score remained 1-1. So, star winger Maximilian Mahr—who had been on the field for only about 10 minutes—took matters into his own hands, going on a solo run into the box and sensationally smashing the ball into the roof of the net to score the winner.

The U-17s also have just three matches left in Phase 1 and hold an 11-point lead over second-placed Augsburg. This victory confirms their progression to the higher division for Phase 2.