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Bayern Munich: Assessing midfield options for 2020/21 season

By Kiran Thakare

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 25: Serge Gnabry of FC Bayern Munich celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's second goal during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between Chelsea FC and FC Bayern Muenchen at Stamford Bridge on February 25, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Harriet Lander/Copa/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 25: Serge Gnabry of FC Bayern Munich celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's second goal during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between Chelsea FC and FC Bayern Muenchen at Stamford Bridge on February 25, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Harriet Lander/Copa/Getty Images) /
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MUNICH, GERMANY – JANUARY 25: Joshua Kimmich of FC Bayern Muenchen in action during the Bundesliga match between FC Bayern Muenchen and FC Schalke 04 at Allianz Arena on January 25, 2020, in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Christian Kaspar-Bartke/Bongarts/Getty Images)
MUNICH, GERMANY – JANUARY 25: Joshua Kimmich of FC Bayern Muenchen in action during the Bundesliga match between FC Bayern Muenchen and FC Schalke 04 at Allianz Arena on January 25, 2020, in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Christian Kaspar-Bartke/Bongarts/Getty Images) /

Holding midfielder

Bayern Munich tried to add a number six to the squad last season. They were heavily linked with a move for Espanyol midfielder Marc Roca, but the transfer never materialized. Since the German club signed Benjamin Pavard from VfB Stuttgart, Niko Kovac decided to move Joshua Kimmich in this position.

Kimmich has excelled in this role and become a reliable midfielder for Die Roten. The German international is not a traditional tough-tackling number six. He is more like a holding midfielder, who uses clever positioning to stay a step ahead of the opponent on the pitch. Kimmich makes vital interceptions and then initiates the counterattacks for the team.

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Along with being efficient defensively, Kimmich’s wide range of passing helps Die Roten dictate the tempo of the game. He spots the runs from attacking players and finds them with pin-point long passes. Kimmich is surely going to be the first choice option for this role next season. The club is reportedly looking to add a right-back in summer so that Kimmich never has to play there.

Apart from Kimmich, Thiago Alcantara is also an option for the number six role. The Spaniard has played in this position frequently in the last couple of seasons. Adrian Fein is also set to return to Bavaria from his impressive loan spell at Hamburg. The German is reportedly going to be part of the first team, so he can be a very able understudy of Kimmich.