Last season was perfect for Bayern, with manager Jupp Heynckes guiding the German outfit to an infamous treble and gaining the tag of the best team in Europe. So, it was always going to be a tough job for Pep Guardiola to come in and improve Bayern, however a 5-0 aggregate defeat to the “Galacticos” it has seemingly become apparent that Guardiola has taken Bayern a step back. A strong statement, but the manner of the defeat suggests they are far from the same team as last year.
That isn’t to say that it has been a poor season for Bayern, wrapping up the title with seven games to go and through to the final of the German cup, but this is the one trophy they wanted. However, believe it or not the German side are in transition with Pep trying to convey his philosophy on the team; the players currently at Bayern do not suit it.
The two centre halves, Dante and Boateng look shaky on the ball, the midfield bereft of ideas and Manduzukic lacking that killer instinct and goal threat. They were beaten by a team in Real that countered with pace and power, exactly what Bayern did to teams last season. Now they play the tikka-taka football to win in style; the only team looking stylish on Tuesday night were Madrid. I’m not saying Bayern won’t be back next season but trying to fix something that isn’t broken is a pointless strategy.
Pep has failed to get the best from his players, Robben and Ribery looked a shadow of their former selves, lacking the ability to beat there men. The system that he wants to play, are not suited to his players and I would suggest that he is not suited to the Bavarian club. The 2013 winners looked have looked poor this season and have failed to excite. Many have figured out their system on the top level, Chelsea - Barcelona (2012), Bayern Munich - Barcelona (2013) are two games to mention where this system has failed and now you can mention Real Madrid (2014) as another example of Guardiola’s system being undone.
An interesting suggestion was that the former Barcelona man likes to play with style and win, which doesn’t fit with the traditional system of getting the job done first and to be pleasing on the eye later. They weren’t pleasing on the eye at the Allianz a few days go.
Bayern won’t sack Guardiola and there is no reason they should, although they have the quality of players to remain at the top level make no doubt this is a transitional period for Bayern. I would expect many changes this summer for the Bavarian club because if Pep wants his philosophy to work the current players at Bayern do not fit the system.
Do you agree? Or do you think it was just an off day for Bayern?
