Bayern Munich started the 2025/2026 season with a relatively thin squad due to a combination of departures and long-term injuries. Following the departures of three senior attackers, namely Thomas Muller, Kingsley Coman and Leroy Sané, only Luis Diaz and Nicolas Jackson were brought in as replacements.
After failed attempts to acquire preferred targets, the Bayern chiefs went all in for Diaz. The Colombian was purchased outright for €75 million, including add-ons, from Liverpool; a rather exorbitant price tag for a 28-year-old. Meanwhile, the €16.50 million fee paid to Chelsea for the season-long loan of Jackson raised eyebrows across Europe as it appeared to be an act of desperation at the 11th hour on deadline day. With Jamal Musiala being one of the long-term absentees, Bayern’s top brass decided to partially fill the void in the attacking department with 17-year-old Lennart Karl.
With both left-backs, Alphonso Davies and Hiroki Ito, also on the mend from long-term injuries, Bayern effectively started the season short of numbers in both defense and attack. With that being the case, there would have been major apprehension amongst the Bavarian fanbase at the start of the season.
Amazingly, less turned out to be more for the Bavarian giants as the Hinrunde ended with Bayern sitting atop the Bundesliga standings, unbeaten with a nine-point lead over second-placed Dortmund. Almost as impressive, Bayern won five of six games in the European Champions League, with the only loss coming at the Emirates Stadium against an in-form Premier League and Champions League table-topping Arsenal side. Let’s take a look at how Bayern Munich defied the odds to set a new record of 16 consecutive wins, in all competitions, to start the season amongst Europe’s top five leagues.