It has been a commanding start to the season for Bayern Munich as they are yet to taste defeat in two months. Initially, Die Roten had to grind out victories, but performances have significantly improved as all key players got minutes under their belt.
The German Champions have also steadily improved defensively in September. The team is conceding very few chances per game and collecting clean sheets while scoring loads of goals. Niklas Sule has been part of the defense that has steadily improved under Julian Nagelsmann in the past few weeks.
Since Lucas Hernandez was injured at the start of the season, Sule got the opportunity to partner with Dayot Upamecano in the heart of the defense. The German defender grabbed this opportunity with both hands and delivered impressive performances.
At the start of the season, Nagelsmann issued the challenge for Sule to get back to his best in the Bavarian shirt. While talking to SportBild this week, Nagelsmann pointed out the next challenge for Sule after his strong start to the new campaign. The German coach wants to see Sule becoming braver on the ball and utilize his complete passing range.
"“Sule was a number 10 at Frankfurt and then was gradually moved to defense by Xaver Zembrod and by me. He must have thought: What are these two idiots doing to me? He still has the #10 gene in him. He has to show that more with the ball. I’ll get it out of him.”"
The past few weeks have seen Bayern dismantling opposition for fun. However, there is more to come from this team under Nagelsmann. Improving the team while playing out from the back is crucial for Die Roten to dominate big teams in Europe and Bundesliga, so it is not surprising to see the German manager demanding more from Sule.
Nagelsmann managed to get the best out of Sule at Hoffenheim, so the next few months could see Sule finally getting back to his best after two poor campaigns. The German defender has struggled to find his best form ever since suffering a serious knee injury in 2019.
Sule’s performances in the coming months could also dictate his long-term future in Bavaria. As of now, both parties have reportedly delayed contract talks until the end of the year. There is also a good chance of Sule finally sealing a move to Premier League after recent reports revealed that he has been trying to engineer a transfer to England for some time.
Nevertheless, the comments from Nagelsmann do suggest that he wants his defenders to be much better while playing out from the back. Along with Sule, other center-back will also have to improve passing to make Die Roten an even better team in the coming months.