In the Zone: Sadio Mané spearheads Bayern threat

When Robert Lewandowski ended a glittering career at Bayern by moving to Barcelona in the summer, many wondered if the Bavarian giants would be the same attacking force in this season's UEFA Champions League. The answer has been emphatic.

In our FedEx Performance Zone stats dive, we take a look at how Sadio Mané and his colleagues are filling that void following another victory for the German champions on Matchday 5.

Bayern made it five wins from five with a remarkable 3-0 triumph at Barcelona and they have cruised through a group that appeared fraught with danger when they were drawn alongside fellow European heavyweights Inter and Barça. Top spot is wrapped up already for Julian Nagelsmann's side while their Spanish rivals are now out of contention.

Mané has been pivotal in filling the void left by Lewandowski's departure with Bayern's attacking players remaining ruthless in front of goal, whether playing with a replacement centre-forward or a false nine. The Senegal forward opened the scoring on Matchday 5 and now has three goals (45 points) in as many Champions League games.

The 30-year-old has racked up nine other shots on target (45 points) on top of those goals while his passing accuracy has been above 80% in each of his last two games, contributing a further 12 points to his overall tally of 149. Arguably his most eye-catching statistic on Matchday 5 was nine ball recoveries (nine points) – that sort of total is usually only recorded by defenders or defensive midfielders.

Mané, who is ninth overall in the FedEx Performance Zone, has certainly not been alone when it comes to goal involvements though. Across their last three appearances, Leroy Sané has three goals (45 points, plus an extra three points for scoring from long range) and an assist (nine points), Leon Goretzka has two goals (30 points) and three assists (27 points), and Serge Gnabry has one goal (15 points) and three assists (27 points).

They have been allowed to wreak havoc safe in the knowledge that Joshua Kimmich has been screening and dictating play from the middle of the park. The midfielder has a team-high 28 ball recoveries (28 points) and a passing accuracy above 90% three times (27 points in total) this season. The quintet are the highest-placed players in Bayern's ranks so far and provide evidence that, while superstars may come and go, their team ethic continuously keeps them ahead of the competition.