After a shaky start to the season, FC Bayern seemed to be lacking the strength they possessed last season. But as weeks went by, it became clear that all they needed to adapt to their new head coach was a little bit of time. And there they go again! They’re back to winning ways!
It took Bayern’s players a few weeks before regaining last season’s great form and since reaching that level again, they have been doing nothing but improving. What they have at the moment is the same team chemistry and understanding they had last year, more attractive football, more opposition domination and surely a much-improved squad.
Apparently, Pep Guardiola knows exactly what he’s doing. But hold on second! Just a few weeks ago he was being criticised heavily for all the changes he made since his appointment. Selling Mario Gomez and Luis Gustavo was not well digested by many fans; meanwhile the arrival of Thiago Alcantara has left question marks hanging over its purpose and so did Mario Goetze’s purchase earlier. Many saw that Pep is wasting his and Bayern’s time trying to emulate Barcelona.
Criticisers made some sense until what seemed to be the breakthrough game. Which in my opinion was the UEFA super cup against Chelsea. That was a close one: A matter of life and death for Bayern. After that game, they gained confidence and embarked on the journey to defend their three titles.
What do we have here now? A mighty Bayern side again that plays brilliant football and still has not been turned into a second Barcelona. Although some signs of “Tiki Taka” have appeared lately, I believe Bayern players are not suited to playing like Barcelona’s. It’s just that the density of exciting names at Bayern makes them look superior to Barcelona, in my opinion.
So the question here is: Can FC Bayern win second Champions League in a row? Since no team has achieved that since the current format was introduced in 1992, football fans might exclude this possibility.
Nevertheless, I don’t think any team has the ability to win this year’s competition more than Bayern. Just try to imagine what would a fully fit squad do, including Thiago and Martinez.
Unless Pep will have trouble dealing with a lot of stars and young talented players in the long run, I see Bayern as title favourites this season.
Simon Sammour