Why David Alaba is vital to Bayern Munich’s success?
By Kartik Sahni
David Alaba’s role in central defence has helped Bayern Munich this season.
It has almost been a month since Bayern Munich lifted their eighth consecutive league title and rounded a domestic double in early July. The Bayern faithful have already started dreaming of celebrating a treble-winning campaign. Who wouldn’t back this Bayern side to lift the European title this season? The newly crowned English champions’ boss, Jurgen Klopp, also touted Die Roten to win this year’s UEFA Champions League.
It has been a turnaround story for Bayern this season. A story authored by Hansi Flick has seen its pages inked by other contributors as well. Robert Lewandowski’s goal-scoring feat this season covers a major chunk of these Bayern chronicles. The resurgence of Thomas Muller as one of the best playmakers in the world is another turning event that every Bayern fan cherishes.
Joshua Kimmich’s dynamism in the midfield and Alphonso Davies’s blistering pace are among the other crucial elements that make Bayern a team worth fearing. Somewhere between those lines, if read carefully, lies an excerpt highlighting the success of an unsung hero named David Alaba.
The Austrian joined Thomas Muller to equal Franck Ribery’s record for most Bundesliga titles this season. Alaba’s influence on Hansi Flick’s system and his tale to lift the ninth Meisterschale was encrypted back in November 2019 when Die Roten were plagued with injuries in the defensive zone.
One can say that if bringing Muller back in the squad as a playmaker set the tone for Bayern’s attacking template then moving Alaba in the centre-half role coded the complete structure for Flick’s pseudo total football.