That was a big kick in the crotch. I read the BL official live text for the 1st half with Bayern comfortably with a 2-0 lead and by the reports playing strong soccer. Come back from a Burn scrimmage to find them ending the match in a 3-3 draw. WTF happened? No silverware this year. A reorganization of the backline during the summer needs to be in the cards and a commanding CB must be purchased among other transfers.
I felt up until the Madrid matched in CL that Bayern were just "going through the motions", playing Bundesliga games half-assed and getting on with it in hopes of facing Real soon. Then we play well the first game against Madrid and my hopes rise for the first time since the two weeks prior to winter break. A decent outing again in Madrid, I am thinking we are over the hump for the season and now FCB will be a force to be reckoned with for the rest of the season. Guess I should have stuck with my original premise! WTF happened in this game?!!? 3 goals in 14 minutes! Mentally this team is incapable of doing anything in Germany. Someone give me some hope... PLEASE!!!!!!!!!
We need a new start, new strategies, and maybe 1-2 new players. All of this requires a new coach. Hitzfeld has done so much for the team, but his time has passed. I remember prior to the season a thread about what players or type of players Bayern should be purchasing. My recommendation then and now is two central defenders, not that that can solve all of the problems, but both Kuffour and Kovac are too inconsistent, ranging from worldclass to Oberliga. Let's take a look at some of the players: Kovac, Kuffour - Just discussed. Liza -Great, but get Rahn back (or get Dede?). Demichelis - He should play, or not have been purchased. Sagnol - Irreplacable, in my opinion. Rau - Who thought purchasing him was a good investment? Linke - Done. Scholl - Should retire. Deisler - Desastler. Ze Roberto - Hitzfeld is the wrong coach for him. Ballack - keep. Jeremies - keep for bench. Brazzo - keep. Hargreaves - Athletic but doesn't add to the game (Jeremies used to). Kahn - His own worst enemy. Screws a barmaid while his wife is eight months pregnant. Then can't keep it together and screws his team in turn. Schweinsteiger - Really keep. Makaay - Worth every penny. But so would have been two defenders for 10 million each. Pizarro - Hitzfeld is the wrong coach for him, but Pizza is replacable. Santa Cruz - Can't prove himself since coming back from injuy. Can't get enough time. Good asset, but also replacable. Zickler - Who? Players who should be playing: Trochowski Rensing Jose Paolo Guerrero Gonzales Rahn (well, he can't) Players to be bought: They want Tevez, but that's never going to happen. They could have had D'Alessandro, but said they didn't need a playmaker because they have Ballack. HAHAHA. There's another player at River who's very good. Cavanaghi (spelling?) is a very dangerous, versatile, and goal-scoring player. Defenders - I don't know. Any recommendations? Dede? Coach: Magath - Doesn't play favorites. Benches players when they don't perform. Would increase the competition within the squad. Any given week only the best would play. Wenger - Attacks. Would be a good fit with the current squad. Would make proper use of Ballack, Ze Roberto, Makaay. Probably could attract better players than Hitzfeld.
Player types to be bought: *Commanding center-back who is strong in the air. *Playmaking withdrawn forward to pair up with Makaay. *Give Kahn his gold watch and find somebody who can hold the position for a few years. While I wouldn't mind other changes or clarity at certain positions (Demichelis named the holding midfielder), I think those three additions would exponentially increase the level of play. P.S. Anybody else think the Kahn situation during the off-season will be a bit nasty? I can't imagine Bayern will want to go into another season with him and I can't imagine he is ready to retire or back-up somebody at Bayern.
Greetings from a newbie. Finally solitary frustration has led me to join the chat forum, and this thread seems the perfect place. There's a lot of dead weight that should be dumped (Scholl, Zickler, Linke, Jeremies). Management can't be sentimental about the past - they should free up space for their youngsters (mgmt often says they want a combo of experienced and young players). Also, Hargreaves has energy and is constantly at the heels of opponents trying to get the ball, but when he does he can't place a pass at speed. Perhaps a big Summer cleaning will happen either by mgmt's choice, or by the players who are tired of being bombarded with criticism by old-timers Franz, Uli, and Karl-H (a possible new thread?).
Excellent analysis, Syncope. Here are my reactions to your various points: list][*]Kovac, Kuffour - Just discussed. - Kuffour has been solid, but Kovac has been horrible [*]Liza -Great, but get Rahn back (or get Dede?). - Past his prime. Rau or Lahm (on loan) would be good replacements [*]Demichelis - He should play, or not have been purchased. - He should get lots of minutes at CB or DM. [*]Sagnol - Irreplacable, in my opinion. - He's been awesome - even world class [*]Rau - Who thought purchasing him was a good investment? - Yes. He's been either injured or riding the pine due to the world class Lizu. When they bought him, they were thinking about the future, when Lizu either leaves or retires. Rau has impressed on the national team, so give him a chance. [*]Linke - Done. - He was great at the WC02, but he's way past his prime. [*]Scholl - Should retire. - Agreed. His body can't take the BL pounding. [*]Deisler - Desastler. - There still may be hope, but let's not hold our breath. [*]Ze Roberto - Hitzfeld is the wrong coach for him. - Hitzfeld or Ze should go. Bad match in styles/tactics. [*]Ballack - keep. - He needs to pull his head out of his ass and show the world once again what he's capable of. [*]Jeremies - keep for bench. - not near what he used to be, but still solid for the bench [*]Brazzo - keep. - very versatile and skillfull. He's played on both sides of the midfield and both sides of defense, all very effectively. [*]Hargreaves - Athletic but doesn't add to the game (Jeremies used to). He is probably EPL bound. I won't miss him too much because he is erratic. [*]Kahn - His own worst enemy. Screws a barmaid while his wife is eight months pregnant. Then can't keep it together and screws his team in turn. One of the World's best (formerly) has lost it. He may get it back, but he's been a liability. [*]Schweinsteiger - Really keep. - should be starting every game. World class talent - just needs cultivating. [*]Makaay - Worth every penny. But so would have been two defenders for 10 million each. - priceless. World Class [*]Pizarro - Hitzfeld is the wrong coach for him, but Pizza is replacable. Good, but not awesome. [*]Santa Cruz - Can't prove himself since coming back from injuy. Can't get enough time. Good asset, but also replacable. May still develop into a great forward, but looks lost still. [*]Zickler - Who?[/list] - should retire. He just broke his leg again. You have to admire his persistence, but his body might be able to handle it. Players who should be playing: Trochowski Rensing Jose Paolo Guerrero Gonzales Rahn (well, he can't) Absolutely!
Detailed and concise analysis. Here's my viewpoint: Let's take a look at some of the players: [*]Kovac, Kuffour I think Kuffour has been solid and is playing better than when Bayern won the CL. Kovac is not that solid, and needs to warm the bench. Can Kuffour partner Sagnol in the meantime at center back? [*]Liza -Great, but get Rahn back (or get Dede?). Liza is still solid, but the years have taken a toll on him. Dede would be perfect replacement. Rahn can get a start as well. [*]Demichelis - He should play, or not have been purchased. Exactly. Give him some playtime here. [*]Sagnol - Irreplacable, in my opinion. Exactly. But can we give him a shot at centerback? I hate to see him replaced each time Bayern needs more attacking power. [*]Rau - Who thought purchasing him was a good investment? [*]Linke - Done. Yeah, let him get the rest he needs. [*]Scholl - Should retire. True. Let him give some space to the youths. His back needs some rest as well. [*]Deisler - Desastler. Anyone has a feeling that his illness could be affecting the team spirit somehow? [*]Ze Roberto - Hitzfeld is the wrong coach for him. Exactly. His style seems to fit La Liga more than BL. [*]Ballack - keep. On certain conditions. Ballack needs to take leadership, and put in 100% all the time. [*]Jeremies - keep for bench. I agree. Still has some firepower left. [*]Brazzo - keep. Agreed. [*]Hargreaves - Athletic but doesn't add to the game (Jeremies used to). I would keep Hargreaves. At least, he wins a lot of balls in the midfield. He can easliy mature in his passes as well. Occasionally has some nice free kicks too. [*]Kahn - His own worst enemy. Screws a barmaid while his wife is eight months pregnant. Then can't keep it together and screws his team in turn. Haha. I love that one. Can Bayern get a good backup keeper just in case? [*]Schweinsteiger - Really keep. Give him more playtime. [*]Makaay - Worth every penny. But so would have been two defenders for 10 million each. Totally irreplaceable. [*]Pizarro - Hitzfeld is the wrong coach for him, but Pizza is replacable. Still has a lot to prove. Liked his assist against Real in Munich. [*]Santa Cruz - Can't prove himself since coming back from injuy. Can't get enough time. Good asset, but also replacable. Yup. Maybe give him more time to rest and then we see what happens. [*]Zickler - Who?[/list] Amazing how some guys do not know when to quit. Summarily, I think the problem with Bayern is that they seem to rely too much on past glories, forgetting that every single victory was earned in the past. If Ballack becomes consistent, I think Bayern could become a force to reckon with.