Bayern Munich must forge new path with Vincent Kompany

Pep Guardiola left Bayern Munich in 2016, bringing an end to his three-year reign. Despite being welcomed to stay on, the Spaniard left Bavaria to join Manchester City as a new step in his career. Since Guardiola’s exit, no head coach has managed to stay at Bayern for two years.

Jupp Heynckes retired from coaching in 2018 after an interim stint at Bayern. Hansi Flick left Bayern in 2021 for the German national team after winning the treble the previous season. Apart from Heynckes and Flick, every other coach has been asked to leave by the club’s bosses. Carlo Ancelotti, Niko Kovac, Julian Nagelsmann, and Thomas Tuchel are the four managers sacked by Bayern between 2016 and 2024.

Taking the constant turnover of managers at Bayern into consideration, it’s not surprising that all of the initially desired potential candidates to replace Thomas Tuchel decided to stick with their current employers.

At the end of a tumultuous season, Bayern Munich had to settle for Vincent Kompany. The Belgian's appointment can only be interpreted as an act of desperation. Before deciding on the Belgian coach, the Bavarian side had seen rejections from Xabi Alonso, Julian Nagelsmann, and Ralf Rangnick. Crystal Palace didn’t entertain offers for Oliver Glasner, while Hansi Flick also opted for a move to FC Barcelona. However, the fact that Die Roten had to turn to Kompany is more an indictment on the club’s powerbrokers than a criticism of the new coach.

The appointment of Vincent Kompany should signal a new era at Bayern; one in which the coach is fully supported by the board and given time to develop with the club with a strong say in player recruitment. Though Karl-Heinz Rummenigge would have raised some eyebrows with his choice of words when he initially revealed the news. He hinted that directors (Christoph Freund and Max Eberl) pushed for Vincent Kompany.

It is reasonable for some of Bayern’s top brass not to be on board with Vincent Kompany’s appointment. The former Manchester City center-back is unproven at the highest level. His biggest accomplishment to date was winning promotion to the English Premier League in 2023 with Burnley, only to be relegated the following year.

Despite Kompany’s rise and fall with Burnley in the space of two years, both he and Bayern Munich’s hierarchy deserve some credit for the move. Kompany’s show of confidence to back himself for the role should not be underestimated. With Burnley, he strived to play attacking and attractive football, and such an approach is in line with that of Die Roten.

As for Bayern’s hierarchy, the appointment of the Belgian coach should be part of an overall change that would involve a more tolerant and supportive approach to coaches from the club’s powerbrokers. There would be a loss of respect for the club in Europe if Kompany was to be shown the exit door before the end of his three-year contract. Those in charge of Rekordmeister must accept reality. Under the current circumstances, the club may very well need to take one step back before it can take two steps forward.