Matchday 26 of the Bundesliga is pivotal for the title race as Borussia Dortmund travels to Allianz Arena. Bayern Munich is currently trailing Dortmund by a point, so the winner of Der Klassiker will gain an advantage in the title race.
Along with the mouth-watering Der Klassiker clash, matchday 26 will also be dominated by the return of Thomas Tuchel to the Bundesliga. Tuchel was recently appointed as the new head coach of Bayern. The former Chelsea head coach was unveiled last weekend after the departure of Julian Nagelsmann.
The departure of Nagelsmann from Die Roten came as a big surprise for the Bavarian faithful and players. The record Bundesliga champions were well-placed in all three competitions, but the club’s hierarchy believed that they had to make a change due to inconsistent performances over the last 12 months.
The arrival of Tuchel gives a clean slate to all players at Bayern. In his column for Sky Sports in Germany, former Bayern player has picked Joao Cancelo as the player to shine under the coaching of Tuchel. Matthaus expects Cancelo to play regularly under Tuchel after losing his spot in starting XI under Nagelsmann during the last few weeks.
"“I also believe, to name just one, that a player like Joao Cancelo will really take off under the Tuchel. In my opinion, Tuchel will play with the two lightning-fast full-backs, Cancelo and Davies.”"
Cancelo made a very promising start to life as a Bayern player after arriving from Manchester City on a loan deal at the end of January. The Portuguese full-back provided an assist in his first game for Bayern. However, his performances dipped in the last few weeks, which saw him lose a spot in the starting XI.
Tuchel will have a plethora of options in the right-back position. Noussair Mazraoui is also back to full fitness, so he will be available for selection on Saturday. Benjamin Pavard has been a solid option for Die Roten in the right-back position during the last three seasons. However, Cancelo provides the best cutting-edge in the final third of all right-backs at Bayern.
Matthaus also criticised Bayern chiefs for the way they handled the departure of Julian Nagelsmann. The 35-year-old head coach got to know about his departure first from the media before the communication from the club. Matthaus believes that Die Roten should have shown more respect to Nagelsmann.
Want your voice heard? Join the Bayern Strikes team!
Meanwhile, Matthaus also understands why Bayern decided to part ways with Nagelsmann. Matthaus insists that inconsistency in the Bundesliga and a poor start to Ruckrunde have contributed heavily to Nagelsmann’s departure. He does expect Tuchel to do a good job in Bavaria and start his time with a win against Dortmund on Saturday.