Niko Kovac is set to make changes to his rotation policy at Bayern Munich as he is set to have a big squad for the trip to Werder Bremen.
Niko Kovac was in a chirpy mood in today’s press conference ahead of the game against Werder Bremen tomorrow. The Bayern Munich manager is confident that he will soon turn things around at the club by getting a series of good results. The Bavarians come into the weekend’s game after a brilliant 5-1 win over Benfica on Tuesday, hoping to maintain their form.
Kovac’s rotation policy has been a heavily discussed topic this season. The Croatian has been tinkering with his starting lineup every game. Speaking with the press (via Bild) on Friday, Kovac admitted that he will avoid making wholesale changes for every game. He further added that there are certain players in the lineup who are going to play almost every game.
"“I have decided for myself that I will already have a scaffolding, where most of them are fixed starters and one or the other will keep coming back accordingly.”"
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Bayern made few additions to their squad in the summer window. Kovac wanted to work with a squad of 20 outfield players, so the club hierarchy sold a couple of midfielders.
The Croatian wanted to develop a competitive atmosphere in order to get the best out of every single player. This rotation policy also avoided the accumulation of fatigue among the many players.
This policy also had its disadvantages, however. The players as a group were not able to gel together in a new philosophy quickly, as there were changes in the personnel for every game. Kovac also rotated his center-backs, which didn’t allow a partnership to develop and could be the cause of Bayern’s defensive fragility this season.
There were murmurs in the German media of players being unhappy with Kovac’s policy. James Rodriguez is reportedly upset due to these methods, and there is a growing uncertainty around his future at the club. On the other hand, players like Mats Hummels and Jerome Boateng have supported Kovac’s idea of constant rotation.
Kovac will have Thiago Alcantara and Kingsley Coman fit for the weekend’s game. This duo is a key component of Kovac’s idea at the club, and they are likely to get an extended run in the starting lineup leading up to the winter break.
Hopefully the Croatian will also focus on developing a solid defensive partnership as well.
The former Eintracht Frankfurt manager made a positional change against Benfica. Joshua Kimmich was deployed in the holding midfield role while Rafinha slotted in at right-back. Kovac admitted that he will stick with this change on Saturday because it provides Bayern more stability in defense. The Bavarians desperately need a win against Werder Bremen; they cannot afford to drop points, so Kovac must field his best starting XI.