Bayern's staggering resurrection!

A tap in from David Abraham confirmed a likely defeat for Bayern Munich on a pleasant evening at the Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt. The fourth goal by Martin Hinteregger added to the embarrassment and the fifth one from Goncalo Paciencia did nothing but triggered a collapse of the greatest dynasty in German football. At the centre of it all was the man at the helm of the most demanding job in Germany, Niko Kovac. Little did he know that the club which shot him to prominence was about to make way for his exit. Kovac's Bayern had lost to Hoffenheim in Munich just a couple of weeks back. Bayern weren't putting in convincing performances and the only grace left for him was the lack of capitalising of the other clubs. But after the Frankfurt game, he literally had no grace left. His relationship with Thomas Mullar had deteriorated further and Bayern had no option but to sack him and they didn't hesitate in doing so. Hans Flick was choosen as the interim manager because he was close to everything that was happening as he was the assistant manager during Kovac's reign. He established some confidence in the team and the results improved. Before the Christmas had arrived, Hans Flick was handed the permanant job to manage Bayern Munich. The difference between Kovac's Bayern and Hans Flick's Bayern was staggering. The group had moved on from over reliance on moments of goalscoring ingenuity from Robert Lewandowski and they actually seemed to be playing like a team. Fast-forward by a week and the team which was trailing Dortmund by 6 points was suddenly destroying their rivals by four goals to nothing at the Allianz Arena. That match reimposed the same old dominance and reinstalled the belief in the people of Munich. With a series of consecutive wins after the resumption of football, Bayern sealed the Bundesliga for the eighth successive year with 3 games to spare. The biggest defeat they suffered in over a decade was long forgotten and the most turbulent period in club's recent history was tackled with shrudness. That is exactly why I think that Bayern Munich is the ideal model for a modern football club. Bayern beat everyone along the way with Lewandowski breaching the 50-goal mark. Not to anyone's surprise, they also reached the German Cup final where they smashed Bayer Leverkusen 4-2 to complete the double.

Now the only missing piece is the Champions League which they haven't won since the iconic team of 2013. This team is no lesser. With the likes of Thomas Mullar and Robert Lewandowski up front, David Alaba and Jerome Boeteng at the back and the imposing figure of Manuel Neuer in front of the goal, they don't lack any bit as far as experience is concerned. Younger players have improved a lot under Hans Flick. Joshua Kimmich is creating chances like no other. Serge Gnabry is looking like a 100 million footballer. He was actually the best player in Europe when Bayern put 7 past Spurs in London. And what can we say about Anthony Davies. The Canadian is one of my favourite players. The guy has everything, the flair, the physicality, the charisma and the skill. I sometimes call him Marcelo in disguise when he is running down the left wing. The individuals have improved so much under Hans Flick that this team can compete with anyone in Europe. Frank Lampard's young Chelsea was hyped to an extent that the 3-0 defeat at the hands of Bayern at Stamford Bridge was made to look like a surprise by a few. Most of us can say this with a lot of conviction that it is very unlikely that Chelsea will overturn the scoreline in Munich. With the kind of momentum they have, there is no reason why they can not go all the way and win the Champions League. 

Talking about the best clubs in Europe, only 2 names come to my mind apart from Bayern Munich i.e. Liverpool and PSG. The current Liverpool side is undoubtedly a great one. They have won the premier league with a million games to spare but they are out of every other competition. PSG are good but they have plenty of internal matters to sort out regarding Neymar and Mbappe before this season ends. On top of that, their performances don't convince you as Bayern's do. So labelling Bayern Munich as best team in Europe won't be fanciful nor will it be an overstatement. 

From what it was on the 2nd night of November to how it is right now, I can only say that it is the greatest and quickest resurrection of a football club I have seen in my lifetime!