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I know there& #39;s still a lot of football left to be played this season, but the whole timetable is obviously a mess - and in either case, seeing the lads lift the Meisterschale always gets me feeling a bit sentimental/reflective.
Some random thoughts on the 19/20 BL season:
Some random thoughts on the 19/20 BL season:
First and foremost - the single biggest takeaway is that we owe a great deal of thanks to Hansi.
I had a bit of a hunch that when he was brought in - a part of that was to have a contingency plan in the event we need to move on from Kovac....
I had a bit of a hunch that when he was brought in - a part of that was to have a contingency plan in the event we need to move on from Kovac....
Obviously, with Kovac& #39;s assistant being his brother, it wouldn& #39;t really have worked to sack Kovac and keep Robert as coach. Haha. So I suspect Hansi was brought in - at least in part - for that reason. Credit to the bosses for that decision.
On the whole it& #39;s obviously paid off.
On the whole it& #39;s obviously paid off.
I try not to dwell on Kovac too much. His time here is over and there& #39;s no sense in continuing to badmouth him. But I think the simple fact is that if he& #39;s not sacked, we& #39;re not champions. The math certainly trends this direction. But having a manager who could...
...simply maintain the status quo would not have been enough, either. We had some catch-up to do - and Flick went above and beyond in that regard. The pace we& #39;ve been on since he took over is quite literally a historic one.
Imagine if he& #39;d had the whole season: records broken left and right! So again - the biggest thanks has to go to Hansi.
I have to also give some credit to our players. I think for many there was a bit of a chip on their shoulders. We all know the media talks quite a bit...
I have to also give some credit to our players. I think for many there was a bit of a chip on their shoulders. We all know the media talks quite a bit...
...telling us how so-and-so doesn& #39;t show up when it counts. This guy and that guy are past their best. This guy will crumble under pressure. There was a notion that the players were coach-killers or that they gave up on Kovac or that they simply weren& #39;t good enough anymore.
But since Hansi arrived, nearly every player has looked like a man on a mission. There is a fire and hunger that wasn& #39;t there before (or that had & #39;gone out& #39;!) I don& #39;t know if it was just Flick& #39;s man-management skills or players wanting to prove they still had "it", but it worked!
I give shouts to guys like Muller and Boateng. Told that they were finished and past it and no longer to be relied on. Muller& #39;s had an all-time great season and Boa& #39;s been rock solid almost all season. Both have had a huge revival and it& #39;s been a joy to watch. Danke!
I think of a guy like Davies, who was largely counted out and written off. Now he& #39;s arguably the best left-back in the world. And he& #39;s just soaking it all in and staying humble and down-to-earth. Thanks, Phonzie!
Or then we have guys like Thiago and Lewy - who the press loves to go after. A common criticism we hear is that they can& #39;t show up when it counts or can& #39;t carry their team. The two of them have ended up being two of our most important players and proved they can be relied on.
Goretzka - who many said just got minutes because he was German. Kimmich - who was said to be just an "ok" midfielder. Pavard - teased as being a & #39;relegation level& #39; defender. Alaba proving himself at CB. Neuer recovering from a bad year. And so on and so on.
There are of course plenty of other players and stories to bring up. That& #39;s just a small sampling. We have had a lot of players develop in big ways and step up when needed. Even if the UCL and/or Pokal don& #39;t go how we& #39;d hope, there& #39;s still a lot to be proud of for this squad.
So just a few things looking to next season:
-First and foremost I& #39;d really like to see both Alaba and Thiago extend their contracts. Two of my personal favorite players in the squad, and IMO two of our most valuable overall. Would be a huge loss to compensate for.
-First and foremost I& #39;d really like to see both Alaba and Thiago extend their contracts. Two of my personal favorite players in the squad, and IMO two of our most valuable overall. Would be a huge loss to compensate for.
-I hope to see a couple of players make "leaps" like many did this season. Top of that list is Lucas, assuming he stays. Fitness hasn& #39;t been his friend this season but with any luck and good healthy he& #39;ll be poised to grow a lot under Hansi.
Second would be Cuisance, if he doesn& #39;t go out on loan. He has showed a lot of promise when given opportunity. I look for him to take a big step. I suspect Goretzka will continue to develop as well. He& #39;s becoming a much more well-rounded player.
-With any luck, hope to see some youngsters get more well-integrated and make some progress, too. I think Arp was really quite promising, until he got every single injury known to man...Musiala has looked good, and personally I wouldn& #39;t mind bringing back Jeong as 4th winger.
Anyways, some random mostly-Bundesliga musings there. Looking forward to the Pokal final and the UCL when it resumes. The march towards the treble continues - Pack ma& #39;s!!
