Coutinho makes full Bayern Munich debut, Perisic also handed first start

Philippe Coutinho and Ivan Perisic were handed full debuts for Bayern Munich after Niko Kovac named the duo in his starting XI for the Bundesliga clash with Mainz.

After arriving on loan from Barcelona, Coutinho came on as a substitute in Bayern’s 3-0 win over Schalke last time out.

Perisic, loaned from Inter, also made an appearance from the bench as Robert Lewandowski’s hat-trick secured the champions’ first win of the season.

But both players were afforded the chance on Saturday to prove their worth from the start, with head coach Kovac making three changes in total.

We have some new faces in our starting XI… #FCBM05 #MiaSanMia pic.twitter.com/xYp5rdUjCE

— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) August 31, 2019

Coutinho came in as the number 10 in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Thomas Muller dropping to the bench, while Perisic was set to start on the left – Serge Gnabry missing out and Kingsley Coman switching to the right flank.

The other change saw Corentin Tolisso make way for Thiago Alcantara, with Kovac deciding to keep his back line of Benjamin Pavard, Niklas Sule, Lucas Hernandez and David Alaba intact. Lewandowski starts up front.