Champion every year since 2013, Bayern Munich this time had to lose on the domestic scene against Bayer Leverkusen, who were simply stronger. A setback for which the Bavarians can only blame themselves, and which allows Germany to finally turn the page on a period of domination that was as impressive as it was boring.
The last time Bayern Munich missed out on the Bundesliga title, Gangnam Style was breaking all records on YouTube, François Hollande had just been elected President of the Republic and Lamine Yamal was still playing toy cars at the kindergarten. Once this old blow has been digested, we must now come to terms with the idea that after eleven years of merciless reign in the Bundesliga, the Recorder ended up leaving his crown to Bayer Leverkusen. A team which, quite a symbol, had never before worn it in its entire history. If we can put this failure into perspective by saying that every series must end one day, and that there is no shame in losing to the incredible team of Xabi Alonso, the Bavarians’ season still looks like a serious crash.
Kane curse and End of Cycle
At the moment when Harry Kane sets down his bags in Bavaria for almost 100 million euros, we say to ourselves that only the curse of trophies which has accompanied the Englishman since the start of his career can prevent Bayern from competing for a twelfth consecutive title. . Faced with competition which each time seems too close at the time of conclusion, like Dortmund during the previous season, the club with six Champions Leagues seems to be taking a little more shelter on the domestic scene. by recruiting the lethal number nine that Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was not.
But it is clear that a single transfer could not on its own remedy the decline in performance of certain executives. Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka, real bosses during the 2020 sextuplet, are today well below their standards in an environment which has never been the same since the departure of Thiago Alcântara. If Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sané and Serge Gnabry are capable of the best, injuries and their chronic irregularity already foreshadowed the fact that they could fail at one point or another. Behind, defensive errors have multiplied this season, like Dayot Upamecano, caught in a negative spiral for a little over a year.
It’s also difficult not to mention Thomas Tuchel as one of the culprits. Since his arrival in March 2023, replacing Julian Nagelsmann, the 2021 European champion has never managed to achieve unanimous support, whether from a tactical or human point of view. The atmosphere in the locker room has indeed seemed deleterious for many months, if we trust the rumors emanating from the German press.
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The Weariness Of the Champion
When we take a look at previous seasons in the Bundesliga, we notice that the Bavarians’ number of points has only declined over the past four years, going from 82 in 2020 to 71 in 2023. We might even be right to think that the incredible sextuplet of 2020 had marked a truce in the club’s relative decline, already underway in previous years. This Bayern had actually been takeable for a while now, but a team simply had to be able to scale the fortress. Their title last season was moreover the consequence of Dortmund’s monumental failure, more than Bayern’s absolute success.
Because it was a problem recognized by everyone in Germany, first and foremost the Bavarians. The domination of the club and the lack of competition diluted the interest in the Bundesliga a little more each year. The eleven consecutive titles will probably go down as one of the most impressive dominations in European football. But if the various players who contributed to establishing this hegemony will forever be remembered, it was much more difficult to draw specific memories of matches or goals that changed the destiny of the championship. Today, Germany hopes to live a new era with this title, more contested and less redundant. Xabi Alonso’s decision to stay at Bayer seems to go in this direction, and perhaps promises new two-way title battles, as was the case with Bayern and Dortmund in the early 2010s.
Bayern, however, still has a chance to save their season, with nothing more and nothing less than the Champions League. A competition which has posed a problem for them in recent years, since the Munich residents have not reached the last four since 2020. If the Germans manage to dismiss Arsenal this Wednesday, they will have to contend with a big piece in the semi-final, with Manchester City or Real Madrid. Bayern can keep a reason for hope: if we refer to this famous 2011-2012 season, the one where they let the Bundesliga slip away for the last time, the Bavarians had precisely brought down the two clubs to reach the final.
