The Weekly Take, Issue 386: 15 in a Row With No End in Sight

Even after just nine of the Bundesliga season's 34 matchdays, it's all but certain that Bayern Munich will - as they almost always do - win the league by a huge margin; their only true competition will come in the Champions League. The Bavarian club's superiority over all other teams in Germany was made obvious once again during the most recent Bundesliga matchday which saw Bayern claim their 15th straight win across all competitions by beating Bayer Leverkusen 3-0.

Although Bayern were facing off against a team which in theory would have been one of their closest competitors for the league title, the word "closest" is relative in this case because, as many might have expected, Leverkusen weren't even close. Bayern dominated this match right from the jump with all three goals coming in the first half; the first two were scored by Serge Gnabry and Nicolas Jackson respectively. Just to rub it in even more for Leverkusen, Bayern's third goal was an own goal by way of French centre-back Loïc Badé.

Although Leverkusen entered this match in the midst of a relative hot streak, this match served as evidence of the chasm between Bayern and the rest of the league. As mentioned earlier, this was Bayern's 15th win in a row; they haven't even drawn, let alone lost, even one match so far this season.

One aspect of Bayern's victory over Leverkusen which undoubtedly raised much attention was the fact that they did it without many of their most important players. Not selected as part of the starting 11 at the Allianz Arena were players such as Dayot Upamecano, Luis Díaz, Michael Olise, and most notably of all: Harry Kane - the Bundesliga's leading goalscorer and arguably the best player in the world right now. Vincent Kompany went with a slightly understrength line-up to face a team which will be in contention for Champions League qualification - and that team absolutely took Leverkusen to the woodshed.

Of course, Bayern's next match will be a significantly more difficult one - they'll be on the road at Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. While it's certainly possible that Bayern's win streak ends at the hands of the Champions League's reigning champions, even that isn't all that likely given the molten-hot form that Bayern are in. There's no question that Bayern are the best team in the world at the moment.

The club record for consecutive wins is 23; this was achieved back in the 2019-20 season. Remarkably, it isn't even out of the question that this current Bayern squad could match or even surpass that number. If Bayern pick up wins in their next two Champions League matches against PSG and Arsenal, there's every chance that they could get to 24 as no other team up until that point seems to pose a serious threat to the streak except maybe VfB Stuttgart in the league - and even that's highly questionable due to not only Bayern's superiority over the rest of the Bundesliga, but also the fact that Bayern have such a psychological hold over those teams that even at their absolute best, the teams closest to Bayern often don't actually believe that they can beat Bayern.

Apart from Díaz, Bayern didn't really make any major acquisitions in the off-season - but as it's turned out, they didn't need to. Many of the players from the 2024-25 squad have improved significantly - and this from a team that won the league by 13 points. The tactical tweaks which Kompany has implemented, most notably a shift to a pseudo 3-2-5 or 2-2-6 formation when attacking, have further elevated the level of this Bayern team.

While it's of course possible that at some point down the line the wheels might start to come off, that doesn't look like it'll happen any time soon given the way Bayern are playing. There's every chance that Bayern will finish the season with a Treble and thus their seventh Champions League title in club history which would tie them with AC Milan for second all-time.

Stopping Bayern Munich will be a tall order indeed - they are absolutely locked in right now to the point that their current win streak feels more like a waypoint than it does to being anywhere near what it'll end up as.

The Weekly Take, Issue 357: The Champions League Title Starts to Slip Away

With Bayern Munich likely to reclaim the Bundesliga title which they stunningly surrendered to Bayer Leverkusen last season, the Bavarian powerhouse’s attention was now firmly on their Champions League quarterfinal against Inter Milan. A win would put Bayern in the semifinals for the second season in a row.

However, Bayern will have their work cut out for them when they head to the San Siro next week after losing the first leg 2-1 at home. Inter opened the scoring in the 38th minute via a spectacular trivela goal by Lautaro Martínez that caught Bayern goalkeeper Jonas Urbig completely off-guard. Although Bayern went into the break a goal behind, they were the team largely in control of the flow of the game; it did seem as though at some point, Bayern would find an equalizer.

After continuing to push throughout the second half, Bayern did indeed make it 1-1 deep into the second half. Just over five minutes before the end of regulation time, Thomas Müller finished off Konrad Laimer’s pass with a half-volley. It was fitting that Müller found the net for Bayern after having recently announced that he’d be leaving the Allianz Arena at the end of the season after a legendary 17-year career at Bayern.

However, at least as far as the first leg would be concerned, Bayern and Müller would be denied their fairytale ending. Only about three minutes after Müller’s goal, Davide di Frattesi scored Inter Milan’s winning goal, ensuring that the Nerazzurri would have the advantage heading into the second leg.

There are several key points to pick out as the main reasons behind Bayern’s loss - but among them, the most important has to be the fact that head coach Vincent Kompany completely bungled his tactics. Many have been skeptical of the Belgian ever since he was hired in the most recent off-season; this was understandable given the fact that his most notable achievement to date was reaching the final of the Belgian Cup in 2022 with Anderlecht - not even close to the level that he’d be expected to be at in the Bayern dugout.

There were three obvious errors that Kompany made in his tactical setup. The most notable was his decision to choose Raphaël Guerreiro over Müller as the starting attacking midfielder. There was no reason whatsoever to do so because this specific match-up favored Müller’s playstyle rather than Guerreiro’s - something Kompany obviously missed entirely. Not surprisingly, Guerreiro was among Bayern’s worst players against Inter because, as predicted, Inter’s tactical setup largely neutralized Guerreiro. By the time Guerreiro was replaced by Serge Gnabry in the 74th minute, it was too late - Bayern had already blown several opportunities which they might have taken with someone else on the pitch; they would be made to pay for those later.

While his big-game struggles have been known for a while now, Harry Kane once again failed to deliver under the brightest lights and highest pressure with a dismal showing, squandering multiple major goalscoring chances. Despite being unquestionably the greatest striker to ever come out of England, Kane has time and again wilted under the spotlight; this match against Inter was no exception. Although Kane will likely put an end to his infamous trophyless career record this season unless Bayern somehow fumble the Bundesliga title, this match once again showed why, for all that he has accomplished throughout his career and despite his standing as an all-time great, he still falls short of that highest echelon - the “inner circle” of those all-time greats.

Finally, even if Bayern were to overturn the deficit and beat Inter to advance to the semifinals, the biggest issue that faces them is probably this: they don’t have that one guy who can single-handedly take over the match and put the team on his back. As of right now, the clear title favorites are Barcelona who have Lamine Yamal filling that most important of roles. It’s very difficult to win the Champions League without a bona fide superstar on that tier - and Bayern don’t have one.

Although it’s too soon to completely dismiss Bayern Munich’s chances of winning the Champions League, things certainly don’t look good at the moment. They’re working not only against their recent track record, but also historical precedent. Unless something changes soon, Bayern likely won’t be bringing the Champions League trophy back to Bavaria for the sixth time.

The Weekly Take, Issue 296: The End of an Era Approaches

For quite some time now, at the beginning of every Bundesliga season it was more or less assumed that Bayern Munich would finish the season with the league trophy in hand. This has been true for an unprecedented 11 seasons in a row - but this streak seems as though it could finally end this season.

Bayern collapsed to a 3-0 loss against Bayer Leverkusen, causing them to slip five points behind their opponents. Josip Stanišić, playing for Leverkusen on a loan deal from Bayern, opened the scoring in the 18th minute. It got even worse after the break; just five minutes after the interval, Álex Grimaldo doubled the Rhine club's lead. In stoppage time, Jeremie Frimpong dealt the final blow to leave Bayern in an unfamiliar position - one in which the Bundesliga title seems farther away than it has been for them in years.

For one thing, Leverkusen are playing like an unstoppable juggernaut. Almost halfway through February, Leverkusen have not lost even one match in any competition this season. If Leverkusen maintain their current blistering pace, there is little to no chance of Bayern being able to catch them.

That being said, there have been clear issues at Bayern which have hampered their title hopes all season long. Chief among these is perhaps the guy in the dugout - one wonders if head coach Thomas Tuchel has by now worn out his welcome at the Allianz Arena. On multiple occasions this season, Tuchel has made questionable tactical decisions which have likely caused Bayern to drop cheap points. Such was once again the case against Leverkusen. Tuchel eschewed his usual 4-2-3-1 formation in favour of a 3-4-2-1 "pocket strat" to mirror the setup of his opposite number Xabi Alonso. Needless to say, this unconventional choice backfired spectacularly. Bayern's ownership group have since confirmed that Tuchel will not be fired any time soon. That could end up being the decision that sinks the Bavarian club's attempt to win the league for the 12th straight season.

Bayern's overdependence on Leroy Sané and Harry Kane has also revealed itself as a clear problem. Bayern haven't been getting enough offensive output from anyone besides their two superstars. The duo of Sané and Kane have combined for 32 of Bayern's 59 league goals as well as 16 assists. Such a skewed ratio is almost certainly not sustainable - particularly if one or even both picks up an injury down the stretch run of the season or happen to hit a slump. Neither were at their best against Leverkusen and once again, nobody stepped up to pick up the slack. Bayern's xG of 0.57 really says it all - they couldn't get anything working up front.

Although Bayern have conceded the second-fewest goals in the league thus far this season, they've nonetheless given up many cheap goalscoring chances along the way but haven't always been punished for doing so. This, however, was an example of such. Despite having 61% of the possession against Leverkusen, Bayern let Leverkusen attempt 14 shots of which eight were on target. While it does appear that Bayern tried to address this during the January transfer window by signing two defenders - Sacha Boey from Galatasaray and Eric Dier on a loan deal from Tottenham Hotspur - it's evident that neither signing has really moved the needle. Even the off-season signing of Kim Min-jae from Napoli hasn't had the impact for which Bayern would have hoped.

Although Bayern won the league last season, there were already signs of a decline as they almost surrendered a large lead to Borussia Dortmund. Considering that last season's Dortmund are clearly a tier below this season's Leverkusen as well as the fact that all of the issues which Bayern faced down the final weeks of last season are finally coming to a head, it's no wonder that Bayern are struggling to defend their league title.

Of course, history has shown us that Bayern Munich can never be counted out until they are mathematically out of the title race. However, this season such a scenario appears more and more likely with each passing matchday. At this point, bringing the Bundesliga trophy back to the Allianz Arena looks like a tall order indeed.

The Weekly Take, Issue 276: Back with a Vengeance

Despite being fresh off winning the Bundesliga title for a record-extending 11th consecutive season, last season could only be described as "tumultuous" for Bayern Munich. Most notably, the pre-season departure of legendary centre-forward Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona left a major gap within the team. Bayern then compounded this issue with the controversial, ill-advised signing of Sadio Mané from Liverpool.

Following the firing of former head coach Julian Nagelsmann and his subsequent replacement with Thomas Tuchel, Die Roten left it until almost literally the last minute to clinch the league title. Without Jamal Musiala's late winning goal against Köln, Bayern would have surrendered the league title to arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund. Additionally, Bayern were soundly beaten in the Champions League quarterfinals, losing 4-1 on aggregate to eventual champions Manchester City.

Heading into this season, Bayern knew they would have to switch things up if they were to make a genuine Champions League title challenge. The Bavarian club made many major roster changes this past off-season. A total of 20 players left Bayern including Lucas Hernandez, Mané, Benjamin Pavard, and Ryan Gravenberch. It was the money generated from these departures that bankrolled the big-money signings of Kim Min-jae from Napoli and Harry Kane from Tottenham Hotspur.

This new-look Bayern squad started their 2023-24 Champions League campaign with a 4-3 home victory over Manchester United. Bayern entered half-time with a 2-0 lead via goals scored by Leroy Sané and Serge Gnabry. United striker Rasmus Højlund and Kane traded goals shortly after the break. Casemiro scored two late goals for United to reduce the deficit, but Mathys Tel added another for Bayern in between to clinch all three points.

Although Bayern were widely expected to win this match, they nevertheless showed that they are at least close to, if not at, their level of two seasons ago. Having decisively outplayed United for the vast majority of the match, Bayern were somewhat unfortunate to win by just one goal. Bayern actually had two shots strike the post.

Bayern's revamped attack appears poised to do significant damage to opposing defenses for the rest of the season. Kane has slotted into the starting centre-forward spot seamlessly and his synergy with Musiala, Gnabry, and Sané has been obvious. Bayern have now regained that attacking punch which left with Lewandowski and had largely been missing throughout last season. The €100 million that Bayern paid Tottenham to sign Kane is quickly turning out to be money wisely spent.

Bayern's impressive depth was also clearly on display. Kingsley Coman and Tel were both highly impressive off the bench, while Matthijs de Ligt did not even enter the match. To win the Champions League, it takes more than just the superstars. This is a seriously loaded Bayern team - very much more so than last season's iteration. On this Bayern team, players like Coman, Tel, de Ligt, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Raphaël Guerreiro, and Thomas Müller - all players who would be regular starters at almost any other club - do not even receive regular playing time. With a bench unit of that calibre, Bayern are well-positioned to endure the war of attrition that is the Champions League.

That being said, almost no one would claim Bayern to be the outright favourites to win it all at the moment. Barça, City, and Real Madrid are the consensus picks in the early going. If there is any area of concern for Bayern, it would be at centre-back. Neither de Ligt nor Dayot Upamecano have been all that impressive thus far. This has been reflected in a key weakness of Bayern's this season - frequent loss of possession in threatening areas. It would not be all that surprising to see Bayern pursue a backup or even starting centre-back to be played alongside Kim during the January transfer window.

Bayern Munich have been a Champions League staple for close to two decades now. Since the 2004-05 season, Bayern have been absent from the Champions League quarterfinals on just four occasions and only twice since 2008-09 - a statistic to which they will almost certainly add this season. The real question, of course, is what will happen once they reach that point. In any case, the match against United as well as the Bundesliga victories before it have made it clear: Bayern are well and truly back.

The Weekly Take, Issue 251: One Goal Ahead Even Before Kickoff

As a Borussia Dortmund fan since 2010, this was the post I really did not want to make. Yet, it is the only thing that comes to mind after the latest edition of Der Klassiker - one in which the stakes between Dortmund and arch-rivals Bayern Munich were higher than they had been in years. First place in the league was on the line. For Dortmund, it was an opportunity to take an enormous step towards breaking Bayern's decade-long stranglehold on the Bundesliga title and win it for the first time since 2012.

However, things did not play out that way. In Thomas Tuchel's debut in the Bayern dugout almost six years after leaving the same role at Dortmund, Bayern emerged victorious by a 4-2 scoreline. The match was actually much more one-sided than the scoreline implied. A shocking own goal by Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel got Bayern off the mark; within the subsequent 10 minutes, Thomas Müller scored twice to all but clinch victory for Die Roten. Kingsley Coman added a fourth after the break before two late Dortmund goals scored by Emre Can and Donyell Malen merely served to reduce the final margin of victory.

Bayern's victory saw them retake first place in the Bundesliga. If recent history is to serve as any precedent, the Bavarian club will not relinquish this lead and go on to win the league for a record-extending 11th consecutive season. This comes in spite of the fact that this season has clearly been a "down year" for Bayern. Both domestically and in Europe, Bayern have not even been close to the level at which they are capable of performing. They were notably less than convincing even while beating Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 fixture. Additionally, Bayern's recent loss to Bayer Leverkusen saw them relinquish first place in the league to a resurgent Dortmund who had been on a tear since returning from their mid-season tour of Southeast Asia.

That being said, there is quite simply a different energy when Bayern take to the field - especially in the Bundesliga. Such is the mental hold that Bayern have over every other team in Germany that even before the match starts, it's as though they already lead by a goal. They have dominated the Bundesliga for so long that at this point, even teams who are on paper capable of challenging them end up faltering when the pressure is at its highest.

One of the clearest examples of the effects of Bayern's "aura" was demonstrated in the 2018-19 season. An early-season slump that saw Bayern pick up just eight points over an eight-match span in the league put Bayern in fifth place after 12 matchdays, forcing them to play catch-up. While this was happening, Dortmund were putting together an impressive winning streak and soon built up a sizeable lead at the top of the league.

However, as the season progressed and Bayern started to come back to form, Dortmund began to falter. As soon as they began to hear Bayern's footsteps behind them, Dortmund started to drop point after point. This culminated in a crushing 5-0 loss in Der Klassiker on matchday 28, which ended up making all the difference - Bayern would go on to win the league by two points.

Some might say that at this point, the Bundesliga is too far gone - indeed, Bayern's utter dominance is one reason why the pejorative term "farmer's league" has often been hurled at Germany's top flight despite being one of Europe's four major domestic football leagues. While I wouldn't go so far as to say "it can never be done", it has become painfully obvious that it will take something truly special beyond measure if any team is to deny Bayern a Bundesliga title in the near future.

It has sometimes been said that sports outcomes are often determined mentally as much as physically. In the case of Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, however, it appears to be even more than that. Though their lead at the top of the league is now just two points with eight matchdays remaining, it feels like so much more than that - and past results give credence to that feeling.

The Weekly Take, Issue 216: The Biggest Transfer Heist in Years

Even though the off-season has barely even begun, some major transfers have already been made. Of these, one which has just been confirmed is of particular note simply because its transfer fee is far lower than just about anyone could have dreamed possible.

Sadio Mané has just left Liverpool to sign for Bayern Munich. The Senegalese star signed a three-year contract after Bayern paid a measly €32 million. To put this astonishingly low figure into perspective, the general consensus on a reasonable transfer value for Mané had been €70 million at a bare minimum. Even €100 million would not have been deemed an exorbitant price to part the forward from Anfield.

To make matters worse, Liverpool had just signed Darwin Núñez for €75 million. Almost everyone agrees that while Núñez certainly has the potential to emerge as a top-tier striker, that transfer fee will almost certainly turn out to be a massive overpay. Although the 22-year-old Uruguayan is fresh off a breakout season at Benfica in which he scored 26 goals in the Primeira Liga, the fact remains that he has not proven that he can continue playing at this level in a major European league for an elite club like Liverpool.

Liverpool have not made many mistakes in the transfer market in recent years; almost all their signings have been impactful and good value for money, while most of their departures were expendable and for reasonable prices. However, this cannot be said of the Mané transfer to Bayern at all. The Reds did not make much of an attempt to drive the transfer fee up to a justifiable point. Mané is too great a player and has done too much for Liverpool during his six-year stint in Merseyside for a fee of €32 million to be acceptable. Yet for whatever reason, Liverpool let Bayern get away with essentially blatant highway robbery.

There is much speculation that Mané personally pushed for this transfer in order to be seen as "The Man" instead of Mohamed Salah's "sidekick". This perception is unfortunate, given the fact that many would argue that Mané is every bit as good a player as is Salah. Thus, it would be perfectly understandable if it turned out that Mané forced Liverpool's hand in this matter.

The reality is that from what has been publicly revealed thus far, Mané's departure from Liverpool is still shrouded in mystery. There was almost no buzz surrounding the move until literally days before it actually happened. Do not be surprised if more information comes to light over the next few weeks.

As for Bayern, the arrival of Mané at the Allianz Arena is exactly what they needed. With the likely departure of club legend Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona, there will be a void to be filled up front. Mané is exactly the player that Bayern need to fill the impending chasm to be left behind. He will ensure that Bayern won't miss a beat if Lewandowski were, as expected, to leave Bavaria.

Incredibly, this is already Bayern's second signing in this off-season for which they have paid an amount far below the player's expected market value. They had already signed Dutch midfielder Ryan Gravenberch from Ajax for €18.5 million. At just 20, Gravenberch is a rising star who many believe will go on to become one of the world's best midfielders once he reaches his prime. Of course, Bayern's acquisition of Mané is of a completely different magnitude. For the time being at least, it makes Die Roten the team to beat in next season's Champions League.

From a tactical perspective, Mané's arrival grants Bayern even more flexibility up front. Although Bayern would lack a true centre-forward if Lewandowski were to leave, they have multiple viable "false nine" options including Leroy Sané, Serge Gnabry, Thomas Müller, and now Mané. For this reason, with or without Lewandowski, Bayern have the best attacking line-up in world football.

If I'd told you a few weeks ago that a €32 million transfer would have a colossal impact on the upcoming season, you probably wouldn't have believed me. Yet, here we are now - Bayern have pulled off an almost inconceivable transfer heist, making them the early favourites to win the Champions League.

The Weekly Take, Issue 205: Halfway to the Most Astonishing Exit

When the draw for the Champions League quarterfinals was released, no one paid much attention to the fixture pitting Villarreal against Bayern Munich. Villarreal, currently in seventh place in La Liga with just 45 points to their name and not even close to a Champions League spot for next season, were widely expected to be easily swept aside by the prohibitive favourites to win European football's biggest tournament this season.

However, as it turned out, Bayern failed to deliver in a way that almost no one could have seen coming. After losing the first leg 1-0 due to an early goal scored by Arnaut Danjuma, the Bavarian powerhouse will have it all to do when they host the Spanish club at the Allianz Arena in next week's second leg.

To make matters even worse for Bayern, this was not a case of a "smash and grab" victory. Villarreal outplayed Bayern for almost the entirety of the match and arguably should have won by more. Bayern were also clearly inferior on the tactical front - a stunning development given the fact that at the age of 34, head coach Julian Nagelsmann is regarded as one of the best young coaches in world football. Despite this fact, Nagelsmann was easily outwitted by his veteran counterpart Unai Emery.

Looking at the starting lineups, one could argue that Nagelsmann overthought matters by attempting to catch Villarreal off-guard. This could be seen in his decisions to deploy Kingsley Coman on the right as well as Serge Gnabry on the left rather than in their usual spots. One could also make the case that Leroy Sané should have started in place of either Coman or Gnabry as his two-way play as well as his dribbling and passing skills would have done much to open up the field and present Bayern with several clear goalscoring chances.

The decision-making on the part of Bayern's playmakers was also extremely questionable. Again and again, they would choose to freeze out Robert Lewandowski for just about no reason at all. Almost every time he would find himself in position to create a chance for himself, he would not receive the ball. Even on the few occasions when he had the ball in the final third, he would almost always find himself stranded without any help. In short, Bayern were disjointed, discombobulated, and a mere shadow of the team which they had been for the vast majority of this season.

That being said, Bayern are probably still the favourites to advance to the semifinals. It must be kept in mind that in the first leg of the round of 16 tie against Red Bull Salzburg, they only managed a 1-1 draw against the Austrian underdogs in the first leg before storming back to destroy Salzburg 7-1 in the second. This is a Bayern team which has several "gears"; they can seemingly flip the switch and play at the peak of their powers at any given time.

Nevertheless, even if they beat Villarreal in the second leg and advance to the final four, serious changes will need to be made if Bayern are to win the Champions League for the seventh time in the club's history. These tactics and this level of play will simply not cut it against Liverpool, the team Bayern will likely play against in the semifinals.

Could this have been a case of complacency and underestimation of Villarreal? More than likely. Bayern appeared to have bought into their own hype and strode into Estadio de la Cerámica assuming that they would be handed the victory on a plate. Perhaps this mentality was fueled by their unchallenged domination of the Bundesliga - a league in which they are about to win for the 10th consecutive season by a large margin, as they always do.

For Bayern, a quarterfinal elimination at the hands of Villarreal would be one of the most shocking upsets in Champions League history. Yet, that is the reality of the situation that Bayern face right now. While they can (and arguably should) turn it around, their spot in the semifinals which once seemed guaranteed now looks very shaky indeed.

We could be on the verge of witnessing a failure of truly epic proportions.

The Weekly Take, Issue 175: One Man Makes All the Difference

This past off-season, former Bayern Munich head coach Hansi Flick left the club to take over at the helm of Germany's national team. Much to the dismay of every other club within the Bundesliga (especially RB Leipzig) as well as Bayern's fellow Champions League title contenders, Bayern would soon bring in Flick's Leipzig counterpart Julian Nagelsmann, a coach with remarkable tactical nous and in-game decision-making skills belying his relative inexperience.

In a Bundesliga match during the most recent matchday which saw Nagelsmann's current club face off against his former one, the effect of the Bavarian coach's presence in the dugout was evident. Bayern had absolutely no trouble notching a 4-1 away victory against Leipzig in a match which saw last season's Bundesliga champions gain what should prove to be a vital three points against last season's league runners-up.

It was obvious from the beginning that Nagelsmann's successor Jesse Marsch was clearly overmatched. From a tactical perspective, as might have been expected, Nagelsmann proved why even at just 34 years old, he is already regarded as one of the world's best coaches. Nagelsmann already seems as though he has been in charge at Bayern for years.

Nagelsmann's track record speaks for itself. Having been coaching for just over five years, he has led both Hoffenheim and Leipzig to impressive results over that time. He rose to prominence after leading an unfancied Hoffenheim team to back-to-back top-four league finishes in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, then followed that up by clearly establishing Leipzig as the second-best team in Germany behind Bayern. He even took Leipzig on an unexpected Champions League semifinal run in the 2019-20 season which included an impressive upset victory over Atlético Madrid in the quarterfinals.

This is the first time in Nagelsmann's coaching career that his team is the favourite - not only in the Bundesliga, but also in the Champions League. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that Bayern's acquisition of Nagelsmann makes them the favourite to win a second Champions League title in three years. Though Flick is not an incompetent coach by any means, Nagelsmann is quite simply on another level - he might very well rise to the "pantheon" level of coaches someday.

Where Nagelsmann truly excels can be seen in the phrase "the sum of the parts is greater than the whole". When you look at the players he had at Hoffenheim and Leipzig, no one would have expected him to lead both clubs to the results which he did. Now that he is at a loaded Bayern team boasting the likes of Dayot Upamecano, Manuel Neuer, Leroy Sané, Alphonso Davies, and of course, Robert Lewandowski, the potential which his squad now has is almost incomprehensibly high - if he could extract such success out of a more limited squad, imagine what he could do with what he has to work with now.

On top of that, Nagelsmann will bring even more tactical flexibility to Bayern. During his time at Leipzig, Nagelsmann was known to rotate formations, switching between three and four at the back or sometimes even playing without a true centre-forward. This once again reflects well on Nagelsmann because it shows he can and will adapt his setup to specifically counter the opposing team - something the vast majority of coaches do not do.

Many coaches in charge of star names for the first time might sometimes struggle with managing the personalities and egos within the locker room. Fortunately for Nagelsmann, this will not be a problem at Bayern. This is a squad which truly buys into the team-first approach from Lewandowski all the way down to the end-of-the-bench backups. Thus, Nagelsmann can expect to avoid any internal drama which could threaten to derail an elite club's season.

Due to his comparative lack of coaching experience, there is something of a reluctance to acknowledge Nagelsmann as one of the world's best coaches. However, everything seems to have aligned in such a way that Nagelsmann will never have a better chance to win a Bundesliga-Champions League double and enter that top tier where he truly belongs.

This season, Nagelsmann could hardly be in a more enviable position. He not only has a great chance to lead Bayern to another Champions League title; but reputation-wise, he also has so little to lose and so much to gain.

The Weekly Take, Issue 152: A Chasm Between Them and the Rest

During the most recent Bundesliga matchday, Bayern Munich all but clinched yet another Bundesliga title by beating RB Leipzig 1-0. Leon Goretzka's goal extended Bayern's lead over their Saxony-based opponents to seven points with just seven matchdays remaining.

At this point, to call the gap between Bayern and the rest of the field merely a "gap" does a disservice to how absurdly dominant Bayern have been ever since the post-pandemic resumption of top-level football in Europe. The second-best team on the planet behind Bayern at the moment is likely one among Inter Milan, Leipzig, or Manchester City. Right now, all three of these teams are not even remotely close to Bayern's level.

Bayern have created a level of separation between themselves and the field which has not been seen since Pep Guardiola's Barcelona team was at its peak. Even the Real Madrid team of 2013-18 which won four Champions League titles including three in a row was never quite this dominant. Not only have Bayern almost certainly secured a ninth consecutive Bundesliga title; it will almost be impossible to deny them back-to-back Champions League titles.

Bayern is a truly storied club with a rich history. With six Champions Leagues, 30 league titles, and 20 DFB-Pokals to their name, any player or team which is to carve out its own place in Bayern's history faces an uphill task. That's what makes it even more amazing that the current iteration of Die Roten might very well be the greatest in the club's history.

The obvious comparison would, of course, be the Bayern team of the mid-1970s which won three consecutive European Cups from 1974 to 1976. This team was arguably even more stacked than Bayern today; it contained legendary players such as Uli Hoeneß, Gerd Müller, Sepp Maier, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, and, of course, the greatest defender who ever lived in Franz Beckenbauer.

At first glance, the Bayern squad of today do not appear to have quite the same level of star power. The only true all-time greats on the roster at the moment are Manuel Neuer and Robert Lewandowski. However, 2021 Bayern's biggest advantage over its counterpart from over four decades ago is its unmatched depth. This is a starting 11 which features the likes of Alphonso Davies, Joshua Kimmich, Goretzka, Thomas Müller, and Serge Gnabry. Almost as if to rub it in for every other club, Bayern even enjoy the luxury of playing Leroy Sané and Lucas Hernandez off the bench.

Ever since the beginning of 2020, Bayern have attained a level of excellence both on and off the field which has very rarely been seen in the history of world football. Last season, they became the first team in the modern Champions League era to win every single match on their way to the title while averaging almost three goals per match en route to winning the Bundesliga title by 13 points.

This season, they have not missed a beat in continuing their success. Their 79 league goals almost equal the combined tally of Leipzig and VfL Wolfsburg who sit second and third in the league respectively. Ever since losing to Borussia Mönchengladbach on December 7, 2019, Bayern have lost a total of just three matches in regulation in all competitions.

At the individual level, Lewandowski is all but a certainty to win the Ballon d'Or and his second consecutive The Best FIFA award. Among the most recent FIFPro World11, four Bayern players were selected: Kimmich, Lewandowski, Davies, and Thiago Alcântara who has since left Bavaria for Liverpool. What's more, centre-back Jérôme Boateng was likely denied a deserving spot in the world's best 11: Sergio Ramos was instead the selection; this pick was likely made based on name recognition rather than actual performance. Boateng clearly outperformed Ramos throughout the season. 

In their upcoming Champions League quarterfinal, Bayern will play against PSG. Although it is a rematch of last season's final, it should be fairly one-sided in favour of Bayern. The fact that a team like PSG who can boast of many stars of their own are likely to have absolutely no chance against Bayern speaks volumes of just how incredible Bayern have been.

Even as a Borussia Dortmund fan, I must admit: we are witnessing a team for the ages.

The Weekly Take, Issue 116: Robert Lewandowski? No, "Robbed" Lewandowski

In an announcement which has caused shockwaves across the landscape of elite football, L'Équipe, the Paris-based football magazine responsible for the awarding of the Ballon d'Or, stated that the honour will not be presented in 2020 due to the extreme circumstances caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

While such a response is perfectly understandable given all that has happened, there is one player who will undoubtedly be extremely dismayed about this decision. A player who has had by far the best season of his career. A player who, over the last two to three years, has made the leap from just being among the leading players of this generation to being a true all-time great. A player whom not many would have selected as a potential Ballon d'Or winner just a year ago, but would likely have claimed the award had it been presented this year.

That player is none other than Bayern Munich legend (yes, we can call him that now) Robert Lewandowski.

Lewandowski led Bayern to a come-from-behind Bundesliga title victory by scoring an astonishing 34 league goals. The Pole claimed the European Golden Shoe by doing so. Lewandowski's 34 goals were the most in the Bundesliga since Dieter Müller netted the same number in 1977. Over the past decade, only four players have scored that many over the course of a major European league campaign - Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suárez, and Gonzalo Higuaín. What makes Lewandowski's achievement even more impressive is the fact that he did in the Bundesliga. Unlike other leagues which have seasons running for 38 matches, Germany's top flight uses a 34-match schedule. Adjusting for this factor, Lewandowski would have scored 38 league goals in a 20-team league.

Lewandowski has also been killing it in the Champions League as well. He has already amassed 11 goals in the tournament even though the round of 16 is yet to be completed. It is likely that he will add to his tally in the second leg of Bayern's tie against an overmatched Chelsea. If Bayern make a deep Champions League run, there is a distinct possibility that Lewandowski's season could reach historic levels. This will probably happen as the Bavarian club are currently the favourites to win it all, thanks in no small part to Lewandowski's outstanding play.

Lewandowski hasn't just been putting up empty numbers. His goals have directly translated to wins for Bayern. He was the scorer of over a third of Bayern's league goals this past season. Such was his level of marksmanship that he scored more goals than Jadon Sancho of Borussia Dortmund and Wout Weghorst of VfL Wolfsburg, the third- and fourth-highest goalscorers in the league, combined. Take away his 34 goals and Bayern would likely not even come close to defending their Bundesliga crown.

While Lewandowski's absence would not have had quite the same effect on Bayern's Champions League campaign owing to their relatively easy path thus far, it will nevertheless be Lewandowski who will serve as the focal point of Bayern's attempt to win European football's most prestigious honour for the sixth time.

Such has been Lewandowski's dominance this season that on many an occasion, teams which play against Bayern centre their entire game plan around stopping Lewandowski. He has become a game-changer on the level of the likes of Ronaldo and Messi in their primes. Not even the most die-hard fan of Die Roten could have seen this coming when the club signed Lewandowski from arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund in 2014.

Obviously, Lewandowski has become one of the greatest centre-forwards of all time. If he were to lead Bayern to Champions League glory this season, it would elevate his legacy even further to one of an inner-circle legend. What's more, if it turns out that his missing out on the Ballon d'Or ends up fueling him, every other team ought to be put on notice because Robert Lewandowski might just be about to unleash hell on Europe's leading clubs in a manner which has seldom been seen before.

The Weekly Take, Issue 108: The Outcome Was Never in Doubt

The latest edition of Der Klassiker ended in what has become a familiar outcome. Bayern Munich beat arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund 1-0. The only goal of the match was scored by Joshua Kimmich, whose spectacular chip left Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Bürki with absolutely no chance.

Bayern's victory took them seven points clear of their opponents at the top of the Bundesliga. At this point, it seems safe to say that the Bavarian powerhouse will win the Bundesliga title for the eighth consecutive season. Despite a slow start to their campaign which included the firing of Niko Kovač who was their head coach at the time, Bayern have once again emerged as the leading club in Germany.

Bayern's perpetual dominance also seems to have had a pronounced mental effect on their Bundesliga rivals. Throughout the recent match, it seemed as though Dortmund did not genuinely believe that they could take down the reigning league champions. They played with a level of fear and trepidation not seen in any of their other matches this season.

This match served as evidence of the mental stranglehold which Bayern hold over every other club in the league. It isn't just Dortmund - other leading teams such as Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Mönchengladbach, and RB Leipzig have faltered when presented with an opportunity to go toe-to-toe with and perhaps even take down the club which has become the bane of every of title challenger over the past eight seasons.

Of course, the most obvious place in which titles are won or lost is on the field of play itself. Only after the matches are played and the results produced can the overall outcome be determined. However, titles are also decided in the space between one's ears. This applies to players, coaches, GMs, and everyone associated with the football club. Herein lies perhaps Bayern's greatest advantage - they are now in the heads of every team which attempts to challenge their domestic supremacy.

Of course, it must also be noted that Bayern have far more money at their disposal than do any of their challengers. Thus, they have been able to select the pick of the talent in the international transfer market before any other Bundesliga club can do so. They have even plundered their direct rivals to claim their elite players. The most obvious example of this has to be Robert Lewandowski, who was signed by Bayern from Dortmund in 2013. The Pole has since gone on to become Bayern's greatest striker since the legendary Gerd Müller.

Another of Bayern's inherent advantages is one which none of their primary rivals will ever be able to overcome. This advantage lies in their location. Among all of the leading clubs in the Bundesliga, only Bayern are based in a large city. The rest are all small-market teams. This is also a factor because being in a large market would attract star players to the club. Even if a club like Dortmund, Gladbach, or Leipzig were to have the financial resources which Bayern have now, they would nevertheless be unlikely to attract superstars to the club. This is because in spite of the large salaries and high level of play they would experience there, most such players would not be keen on living in such a location. If, for example, Eintracht Frankfurt or Hertha Berlin were to become extremely rich, it may be different. However, it won't happen with any of Bayern's current closest rivals.

Bayern's slow start to the season fooled many into believing that their streak of dominance would come to an end this season. Admittedly, I was among those who also doubted Die Roten. Their play under Kovač was nowhere near their usual standard; thus, it seemed as if this would be the year that Bayern's reign would finally end.

However, as the season progressed, went on hiatus, and resumed, the gulf between Bayern and the rest of the title contenders became increasingly evident with every matchday.

It will take a truly spectacular season-long performance for any team to dethrone Bayern over the next few seasons. However, based on recent history, this seems very much unlikely. It pains me as a Dortmund fan to say this, but for the foreseeable future, no club in Germany is likely to put an end to Bayern's run of league titles.

The Weekly Take, Issue 87: Way Too Hasty of a Decision

Eintracht Frankfurt produced the outstanding result of the most recent Bundesliga matchday with a spectacular 5-1 victory over reigning league champions Bayern Munich. As was indicated by the scoreline, it was an extremely one-sided match - Frankfurt completely dominated the Bavarian giants and easily outclassed them throughout.

However, the most astonishing turn of events took place the day after the match.

As a direct consequence of the loss, Bayern head coach Niko Kovač was fired from the position. This move came as a major surprise due to the fact that Kovač had led Bayern to a Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal title in the 2018-19 season and that this season, despite the crushing loss to Frankfurt, Bayern are still firmly in the league title race; they only trail league leaders Borussia Mönchengladbach by four points.

Bayern have never been a club to make spur-of-the-moment decisions like this, so the club's firing of the Croat was very much unexpected. Despite Bayern's somewhat slow start to the season, they were not in any way a club in crisis and thus had no reason to make such a drastic and hasty decision.

When Kovač took over at the Allianz Arena in July 2018, some questioned the decision to hire him because he had only had six years of experience as a head coach up to that point, of which only two were in a major European League. However, at that time, he had been fresh off leading Frankfurt to an unexpected DFB-Pokal title after stunning Bayern 3-1 in the final.

However, after a shaky start and moderate amounts of unrest in the Bayern locker room, Kovač rapidly corrected the situation and steered the club back on the right path, culminating in a league and cup double in his first season in charge. Although Bayern were knocked out of the Champions League in the round of 16, they can count themselves unfortunate that such was the case because their elimination was against eventual champions Liverpool in what was one of the tournament's most hotly contested matchups. When combined with his impressive tenure at Frankfurt, the Berlin-born coach had been beginning to build quite the impressive coaching résumé, so his firing was clearly contrary to everything which had preceded it apart from the recent loss to Frankfurt.

Of course, that's not to say that Kovač has not made his share of mistakes during his time at the helm of Bayern. Some of his chief errors came in the transfer market. The signing of Lucas Hernandez from Atlético Madrid for the eye-popping sum of €80 million was an obvious overpay, while Bayern were likely underpaid when they sold Portugal winger Renato Sanches to Lille for €20 million. As has been mentioned, Kovač was not always the best manager of personalities either; the occasional bouts of intra-team discord were evidence of this fact, although it never reached a point which caused the complete implosion of the team.

Nevertheless, it is fairly likely that Bayern's decision to fire Kovač will prove to be the wrong one. The coach who is seen by most as Kovač's successor is former AC Milan and Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri. Landing the man from Livorno would be a major coup for Bayern; however, should they fail to do so, they will certainly be in a difficult position.

The fact that Kovač was fired just one day after the 5-1 loss proves that his firing was a knee-jerk reaction and not one which was carefully planned. As Bayern have always been methodical and measured in the way the club is run, this was very much unlike Bayern's upper management to pull the trigger; they could very well end up regretting this impulsive decision.

As for Kovač himself, one should expect him to find himself back in the dugout before too long. The chances are also relatively reasonable that he will do so with another of Europe's leading clubs; he has proven himself as a good enough coach to deserve a second chance with such a club.

I would like to conclude this post by saying one thing: as a Borussia Dortmund fan, I will admit to having indulged in a good deal of schadenfreude during the match, after it, and even while writing this post.

The Weekly Take, Issue 51: Death, Taxes, and Bayern

This has not been a vintage season by any means for Bayern Munich.

The Bavarian club is at risk of losing the Bundesliga title for the first time since 2012.

Their over-dependence on Robert Lewandowski has only become more prominent as the season has gone on. The Pole has scored 25 of Bayern’s 60 goals in all competitions thus far.

Niko Kovač, who took over as Bayern head coach at the beginning of the season, almost lost his job just a few months ago.

So, it was no surprise that heading into the first leg of their round of 16 Champions League tie against Liverpool, Bayern were viewed as the clear underdogs – a position they seldom find themselves in.

But as the Reds found out, write off Bayern Munich at your own peril. Bayern left Anfield with a 0-0 draw, and with the second leg to be played at the Allianz Arena, they suddenly seem likely to reach the Champions League quarterfinals for the eighth consecutive year.

Bayern’s consistency in the Champions League is absolutely staggering.

Not only have they made it to the last eight in each of the last seven campaigns, they have also done so in all but three seasons since 2005. Even more remarkable is the fact that in all but two seasons since 2010, Bayern have reached the semifinals.

This is a testament to the remarkable team culture and spirit that has been built in Munich. No other team in world football, apart from Barcelona and Real Madrid, even comes close, and this is what separates great clubs from legendary clubs.

Now, don’t misunderstand me. Teams such as Juventus, Manchester United, AC Milan, and Liverpool, just to name a few, are great, historic clubs with many honours to their name and tremendous club legacies.

However, Bayern are, in my opinion, one of an exclusive club of three. They are the sort of team about which, no matter the era or the squad, you just have this sense that somehow, some way, they will figure things out and be all right in the end. While some of the other teams I mentioned have had this “aura” at certain points in their history, none of them have had it be a constant feature of their team the way Bayern have.

This once again goes back to team culture. Consider the fact that, despite having all-time greats such as Arjen Robben, Robert Lewandowski, Manuel Neuer, and Thomas Müller among their squad members, this is a comparatively egoless team. All their stars have been willing to buy in and put the team before individual glory.

Bayern have always been more about the collective than the individual. From Franz Beckenbauer to Gerd Müller to Lothar Matthäus to Oliver Kahn and many others besides, Bayern’s superstars have always set the tone of the team’s culture in a positive way, and this has always translated to results on the field.

Arguably the greatest example of this culture of winning was shown in Bayern’s 2001 Champions League semifinal victory over Real. On paper, Bayern seemed to have no shot. This was a Real team boasting players such as Raúl, Roberto Carlos, Luís Figo, and Claude Makélélé. On the other hand, Bayern’s only genuine superstar at the time was Kahn. Yet, despite Bayern’s clear talent disadvantage, they not only won the tie, but did so by beating Real in both legs, winning 1-0 and 2-1 respectively.

This is a big reason why many rising stars want to play for Bayern. They know that the exemplary team atmosphere will do their budding careers a world of good. In their current squad, players such as Thiago Alcântara, Ribéry, Niklas Süle, and Renato Sanches were all 24 years old or younger when they joined. Each of them has since seen their careers go from strength to strength, and Ribéry has even become one of Bayern’s greatest players ever.

As a Borussia Dortmund fan, it pains me a little to say this, but greatness has to be recognized and applauded, and Bayern Munich have been truly great for an almost-unbroken stretch of nearly 50 years.

Do not be surprised if Bayern go on to win their sixth Champions League title this season.

The Weekly Take, Issue 39: Poland’s Finest Reaches 50

Heading into a Champions League match against Benfica, Bayern Munich had been in the midst of an alarming slump. Their results had been so poor that recently-hired head coach Niko Kovač already found himself at risk of being fired.

However, the Bavarian team broke their slump in emphatic fashion, hammering the Portuguese club 5-1 and securing the first seed in their group.

Another notable fact about the game was that Robert Lewandowski’s first of two goals made him the seventh player in Champions League history to score 50 goals in Europe’s leading club football tournament.

What makes this feat even more impressive is that Lewandowski now has 51 goals in 77 Champions League games.

To put this into perspective, legendary strikers such as Samuel Eto’o, Filippo Inzaghi, Didier Drogba, and Thierry Henry have all played more Champions League games than the Polish legend (yes, we can call him a legend at this point), but none have scored as many goals.

Despite his obvious goalscoring prowess, Lewandowski has arguably become the most overlooked football superstar in today’s game.

When discussing who the best strikers in the world are, after the obvious picks of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, most would cite names such as Kylian Mbappé, Mohamed Salah, Luis Suárez, Harry Kane, and Neymar, among others.

One player who is frequently forgotten in these discussions is Lewandowski – a real shame considering all that he has accomplished and the true big-ticket star he really is.

As of the writing of this post, Lewandowski has played 650 career games for club and country, scoring 403 goals. Of these, 240 of them have come in high-leverage games, which I define as games in a major domestic league, the Champions League, or an international tournament.

To put this into perspective, when comparing these numbers to some of today’s other elite strikers of around the same age, Lewandowski’s numbers look even more impressive.

Sergio Agüero has played 688 games and scored 374 goals, of which 267 have been in high-leverage games.

Edinson Cavani has 379 in 652 games, with 158 being on the biggest stages.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has netted 242 in 496 games. Of these, 139 were scored in high-leverage games.

Luis Suárez has 436 in 685, with 225 in the most important games.

Only Suárez has more career goals, while only Agüero has scored more in high-leverage games. Furthermore, both have played more career games than Lewandowski.

Lewandowski has also been the Bundesliga’s top goalscorer three times over the last five seasons.

He is one of 24 players to have ever accomplished this feat in a major European league.

The others to have done so include names such as Gerd Müller, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Thierry Henry, Alfredo di Stefano, and Michel Platini. Thus, as I mentioned earlier, Lewandowski is already among the all-time greats.

His goals also translate to wins, as Lewandowski has helped his teams to seven league titles and three domestic cups.

As a pure finisher, there is arguably no better in the world today than the man from Warsaw. The clearest evidence of this was his legendary five-goal performance for Bayern Munich against Wolfsburg in 2015. In that match, Lewandowski came off the bench to score five goals in just nine minutes, an all-time record. To cap it off, his fifth goal was a spectacular bicycle kick from the edge of the penalty area.

But beyond all of this, one other thing is clear:

Robert Lewandowski is the greatest footballer to ever come out of Poland.

Through the years, Poland has produced some great players.

Zbigniew Boniek. Kazimierz Deyna. Grzegorz Lato. Jerzy Dudek. Łukasz Piszczek.

Lewandowski has surpassed every single one of them.

The player with the best case among those I just mentioned is Boniek, but Boniek was frequently on stacked teams throughout his career – he played for a Juve team containing Platini, Marco Tardelli, and Paolo Rossi, as well as a Poland team with Deyna and Lato.

That Poland team reached two World Cup semifinals. Just think what Lewandowski could have done with such teammates.

Maybe it’s the fact that his playstyle is not flashy. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s from Poland. Or, it could be the fact that he plays for Bayern Munich, a club often overlooked as well.

But right now, there seems to be no stopping the Bayern superstar.