Guardiola pleased by squad strength in Bayern´s Darmstadt win

Pep Guardiola praised his reshuffled Bayern Munich line-up as the champions made it five Bundesliga wins out of five at Darmstadt.

On the back of a 3-0 Champions League triumph at Olympiacos in midweek, Guardiola introduced a number of his fringe players and was rewarded with the same scoreline.

Two of the players brought in – full debutant Kingsley Coman and midfielder Sebastian Rode – netted within two second-half minutes of each other to make the points safe after Arturo Vidal’s spectacular 20th-minute opener.

During the closing stages, Guardiola was able to give a run out to Javi Martinez – the Spain midfielder making a welcome return from his injury nightmare.

“I am very, very happy. We interpreted the game very well,” the coach told a post-match press conference.

“It’s not easy to win here after the Champions League.

“I am very happy for Javi Martinez, I really missed him this year.

“I am also very pleased with [Joshua] Kimmich and Rode. Both [deserve] more minutes than I have given to them – they have shown me again today.”

Speaking to Bayern’s official website, Rode added: “The early goal was very important. Darmstadt played very well.

“Every footballer wants to play, but when you see who is at Bayern on the pitch it is not so easy get in.

“So you have to wait for the chance. Today I have shown that I can do it. That makes me very happy.”