FC Bayern – Evolution not Revolution

Article by Ed Hewings

When Bayern Munich swept aside all that lay before them in the 2012/13 season, everyone was thinking to themselves “How on earth can Guardiola possibly improve this?”

With Borussia Dortmund having won the two previous Bundesliga titles, and Bayern having been defeated in the Champions League Final by Chelsea, Jupp Heynckes declared that his final season in charge of the Bavarian powerhouses would be one where all those demons were laid to rest. Money was spent during the close season, the defence was tightened up significantly, and the striking options available were expanded – the trio of Martinez, Dante and Mandzukic enabled Bayern to be the first German team to win the Treble of Bundesliga, Champions League and DFL SuperCup playing with aggression, power and commitment. Nothing represented this more than the 7-0 destruction of Barcelona in the Champions League Semi-Final. Not a long ball in sight.

Jupp Heynckes achieved this using the very popular formation of 4-2-3-1, with the full-backs getting involved in the forward play, and the two holders in midfield ‘sweeping up’ wherever necessary. There was a target man up front, who wasn’t used traditionally as a target, but ran the channels diligently, and was useful with the ball at his feet. There were two wingers, and a man in the hole behind the striker. I, for one, viewed this as footballing magnificence, the finest club team (I ranked them higher than Barcelona) I had ever viewed.

So what exactly has Pep changed, and how has it made Bayern a totally different proposition to what was on offer last year? It has been a program of evolution, not revolution.

Bayern have moved to a 4-1-4-1 formation in the majority of their games this season, which has led to personnel and role changes.

Philipp Lahm, the finest fullback of the modern era, has been moved into a holding role in front of the defence. Given that he is able to play almost anywhere across the back four, the full backs (in particular David Alaba) are given express license to move forward and become part of the attacking play. Lahm’s tackling expertise and technical ability mean that he is equally as adept as the ‘quarterback’ role when the team is defending.

David Alaba was attacking under Jupp Heynckes. Under Pep, he runs up and down the left wing like a man possessed – it says something that he is considered as a left winger when he plays for his national side (Austria). When he does go forward though, he is different to anything you may see from Ashley Cole or Jordi Alba – he appears in the centre of the pitch, finding the gaps between the lines of defence, almost in a number 10 position. This evidently results in an extra attacker in the center of the pitch, which causes cause chaos for the defence, and allows extra offensive space for one of the more traditional attacking midfielders have (and they have a veritable smorgasbord, including Ribery, Robben, Gotze, Kroos, Shaqiri, Schweinsteiger and Muller).

However, this induces a weak point in the Bayern team – when Alaba does get forward, Lahm is usually employed in moving further up the pitch, leading to a huge hole on the left side of Bayern’s defence. Intelligent opposition will setup and identify this space as the way to expose Bayern, and this has been the source of most goals conceded by Bayern this season.

Although Pep started the season with Mandzukic up front, as a target man in the system, in recent weeks he has opted to start with Thomas Muller in this position. However, this is more of a falsity, as Muller is more regarded as one of the many attacking midfielders, and means Bayern play with the somewhat unusual ‘False-9’ position, Spain being the significant exponent of this. This does lead to a somewhat disappointing ‘Shots to goals’ ratio. The arrival of Robert Lewandowski will add greater depth to the Bayern attacking options, and will give Guardiola more chance to develop the system.

Bastian Schweinsteiger has had to change his game a fair amount – from his initial beginnings as a right winger, he was subsequently converted into a ‘Pirlo’ kind of player, where he excelled for both club and country. However, with the change in formation, he has been required to move further forward up the pitch, which at present, he looks uncomfortable with. Undoubtedly, with his qualities and work ethic, we will see him returning to the form which saw him named in the European Team of the Year last year, and in the team of the World Cup 2010.

An undoubted beneficiary of the change in management staff has been Franck Ribery. The Frenchman was an enigma for many years following his move to Bayern, not turning in the kind of performances that were expected of such a prodigal talent at Metz and Marseille. Whilst he was awarded European Player Of The Year 2012-13, ahead of the Holy Duo of Messi and Ronaldo, his form at the start of this season is a direct result of the responsibility Guardiola has put on his shoulders – he wants him to be the talisman for the team. This was exemplified in the Super Cup against Chelsea, where the passion he showed throughout the game in terrorizing Ivanovic and the Chelsea defence rubbed off on the team as they limped across the line. Bayern struggled in that game as a result of the new system, yet Ribery took it upon himself to make their superior quality show.

Guardiola has stuck to the ethos instilled in the club by Heynckes of possession football, effective attacking and playing a team who will always give all for the cause, yet has adjusted it slightly to make it a more fluid system. However, this relationship is in it’s infancy, and as a result the fluency that one would expect from a Guardiola side is not there yet. However, you would have to be a brave individual to bet against Pep being a huge success at the club.

So, where can Bayern go? From the formative weeks of the Bundesliga, it looks as though it will be a direct shoot out between Borussia Dortmund and FC Bayern (who would have thought?), yet with the impending departure of Lewandowski from Dortmund to Bayern, one cannot look much further than the Bavarian side to regain their crown. It will be one hell of a ride though.

Many have tipped Bayern to be the first successful defendants of the Champions League title – looking to their dismantling of Manchester City, the quality of the team at present (despite, one feels, not being at 100% yet), and the history of the manager in the competition, do not be surprised to see German beach towels covering Lisbon come May 2014.

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