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When the 2019-20 season began, Bayern Munich appeared to be a club in crisis. Former manager Niko Kovac was under pressure as he seemed to be running out of ideas to get the team ticking on the field. There was also an over-reliance on Robert Lewandowski and the squad rotation led to quite a number of dissatisfied players on the bench, thereby affecting the overall chemistry within the team.
The Bundesliga giants endured a series of inconsistent results before their 5-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt at the Commerzbank Arena rang alarm bells at the club. The board soon decided to sever their ties with Kovac and made Hans-Dieter Flick their interim manager.
Under Flick, the Bavarians turned their fortunes around and are now a team in red hot form. After an impressive return from their interim coach, the club decided to extend the German's contract until the end of the season. Having said that, the results are all pointing to Flick staying at the club beyond this summer.
In this article, we take a look at three reasons why Bayern Munich must keep Flick as their manager next season.
#3 He is tactically sound
Flick has proven to be a tactically sound manager in his brief stint at Bayern Munich. He often fields players in flexible formations to enable them to play to their strengths, thereby reducing the chances of individual mistakes and leading to more coordination and confidence on the field.
Even without key defenders like Lucas Hernandez and Niklas Sule, the German coach has still managed to plug holes in the back-line in a short period of time. He has also transformed Bayern into a team that willingly attacks and defends while dominating possession. They are now always trying to push the ball into the opposition half and are constantly looking to create chances every time the ball is in the final third. The passing triangles in midfield have also become more fluid and there is a lot more willful pressing when the team is without the ball.
Flick, who has been trying out various formations at every possible opportunity, is also an avid learner who's quick to identify and admit to mistakes, thereby making it easier for the team to improve in the ensuing games.
#2 He is a brilliant man-manager
Since his days as an assistant manager at Bayern Munich, Flick has always been the man to provide support to every player in the squad, with his efficient man-to-man communication on and off the pitch often highlighted in the media.
The 55-year-old has given the likes of Jerome Boateng and Thiago a new lease of life at the club. During his initial days, Thiago spent the majority of his time on the bench but the confidence that the coach put in him and his adaptability has made the Spaniard an undisputed starter in the midfield.
Alphonso Davies is also taking everyone by surprise with his performances at left-back while David Alaba has shown scintillating displays at the centre of the defence. Such brilliant positivity is oozing out of the team at the moment and much of the credit should go to the background work done by Flick at the end of each day.
#1 He has overseen the crucial revival of Thomas Muller
To the joy of Bayern Munich fans everywhere, Flick has commanded the revival of Bavarian-favourite Thomas Muller, with the versatile attacker scoring and assisting regularly once again. He has registered 10 goals and 18 assists in 36 games in all competitions so far this season and is likely to increase his tally when all football activities resume.
Muller has worked extensively with Flick during their time with the German national team and, as a result, the first thing the manager did when he took over the club was making sure the Ramdeuter plays a key role in his formations and tactics.
Flick's effective use of Muller has led the team to become less dependent on Lewandowski for goals over the course of the season. The 30-year-old veteran's movement and intelligence on the pitch have been causing massive problems for opposing defences and his overall improvement can mostly be attributed to his manager's brilliance.
