Joshua Kimmich has impressed former Bayern Munich sporting director Matthias Sammer with his performances for both club and country.
The Bavarians had a poor week in terms of results, as they dropped points in two successive Bundesliga games. Bayern Munich tasted their first defeat of the season against Hertha Berlin on Friday, in a pretty flat performance from Niko Kovac’s men. The consequence of this weekend’s results saw Bayern drop to second place in the Bundesliga table.
There were very few positives from the game against Hertha Berlin, as Bayern were inefficient in the final third. Joshua Kimmich, however, was consistently good in both games against Augsburg and Hertha Berlin. Speaking to Eurosport (via Onefootball), Matthias Sammer heaped praise on Kimmich for his consistency over the past year. He believes that Kimmich has all the qualities to captain both Bayern Munich and Germany in the future.
"“Joshua Kimmich is a mentality player. He will sooner or later be the captain, the leader of Bayern and the national team.“He’s an intelligent, strong player. Kimmich brings with him strong character, you have to have that ambition in you, you always have to strive for the highest.”"
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Kimmich has become Bayern’s most reliable player over the last 18 months. He’s seamlessly slotted in at the right-back position after Philipp Lahm’s retirement. The defensive side of his game still needs some fine-tuning, but it’s his attacking qualities that really set him apart.
The German international has provided a new dimension to Bayern’s attack with his marauding runs and accurate deliveries from the wide area. He also has a knack of scoring important goals in big games. It was a massive shame that he was not included in the 2018 FIFPro World XI.
Kimmich has also established himself as one of the most important players for Germany under Joachim Low, who has praised his ability to read the game on multiple occasions. Kimmich has always shown the hunger to improve and achieve success at both the national and club level.
The German full-back was bitterly disappointed at the end of last season. Bayern failed to win the DFB Pokal final, while their Champions League run ended with a semifinals defeat against Real Madrid. Kimmich is determined to be better this season and take Bayern all the way in both cup competitions. He is still learning and improving his game, but he has all the necessarily qualities to lead Bayern and Germany in the future.
Sammer wasn’t so kind with his words for Jerome Boateng. The German defender delivered a poor performance against Hertha Berlin, conceding an early penalty by making a needless tackle in the box. Sammer blasted Boateng for being “over-motivated” and “reckless,” suggesting he needs to find a way to show his commitment to the club without jeopardizing his performance on the pitch.
Bayern’s defense looked solid up until their past two games this season. The Bavarians still have two more games before next international break, though, and Niko Kovac will be expecting better displays from his players at both ends of the pitch.