Profiling Michael Olise with Data & his Positional Play at Bayern Munich

The Frenchman is a subject of interest from Liverpool as the Reds aim to find a 'Mohamed Salah successor'

Written on 30/03/2026

As Liverpool prepare to bid farewell to one of their best-ever players (Mohamed Salah) at the end of this season, the focus immediately has to shift towards signing a player who, if not a direct replacement for Salah in terms of everything the Egyptian has provided for the last eight years, is at least close in terms of the quality and regular output from the right wing.

Several names have been discussed over the last few days, one of which is Bayern Munich star Michael Olise [a left-footed winger, age 24]. The French international is no stranger to English football, having plied his trade at Reading and Crystal Palace before moving to Germany two summers ago.

Although the Bundesliga champions deny reports linking the player to Liverpool, or any potential sale, there is a sense that the Reds might test the waters with a bid, provided they qualify for Champions League football for the coming season (which would be a necessity, one thinks).

This article provides a deep dive into the numbers Olise has produced for Bayern this season, examining how they compare to his peers across Europe’s top leagues, his role in Vincent Kompany’s current system, and the specific profile of the winger the Frenchman is. By the end of this piece, you should have enough information to decide if he would be the right ‘fit’ for Liverpool, though there is certainly no doubting the player’s quality.

M. Olise: 2025/26 Percentile Bar Chart

The bar chart, split into three categories, displays Olise’s percentile ranks relative to wingers, forwards, and attacking midfielders in Europe’s top leagues, using recently collected data. Let’s take a look:

To add to all of the above, he ranks in the 95th percentile for recoveries in the final third per 90 among Bundesliga forwards and wingers. He is effectively a complete forward/winger, delivering elite output for a Bayern side that already has Harry Kane producing remarkable numbers and former Liverpool star Luis Diaz performing well on the opposite wing.

The next part explores how Olise is used positionally in the current Bayern system under Kompany. Let’s have a look.

Olise Positional Analysis in the Bayern system

The Bayern head coach prefers to deploy a 4-2-3-1 formation with Olise on the right, Díaz on the left, and Kane leading the line. There are a variety of options for the number 10 position, depending on player availability and the specific profile required for the match.

Here are the average positions of all the Bayern players in league games so far this season.

As expected, Olise and Díaz hold the width on either side of the pitch. Kane’s average touch map shows him playing almost as a second striker, positioned just behind the average locations of Jamal Musiala and Nicolas Jackson. We have seen various situations where the England captain drops deep and plays balls in behind for either Díaz or Olise to chase, with the wingers attacking the box via out-to-in runs.

This is the touch map of a winger who is adept at both holding the width when required and making those out-to-in runs, with or without the ball, to use his left foot to either create a chance or have a pop at goal. We dive further into this touch map and categorise the touches by zone to better understand his movement.

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