With Germany conquered, brilliant Bayern seek European dominance
The star-studded Bavarians have a seventh Champions League title firmly in their sights
Lee U-Wen
IT IS the afternoon of May 27, 2023, and Bayern Munich can feel their decade-long grip on the Bundesliga crown slowly loosening, finger by finger.
It’s an excruciating experience for the Bavarians (Bayern’s nickname), for the minutes are ticking away as they look to break the deadlock against a determined Cologne on the final day of the season.
A failure to secure all three points would have seen the Meisterschale – the shiny championship shield – go to rivals and then-leaders Borussia Dortmund, a team that were so sure of finishing first that they even had a post-match victory parade all planned.
But this is Bayern Munich, a resolute team that have the words “doggedness” and “steel” firmly embedded in their DNA. With less than 60 seconds left on the clock, up stepped Jamal Musiala – a 20-year-old Stuttgart-born attacking midfielder - to rifle the ball into the back of the Cologne net.
Cue pandemonium, and when the final whistle blew moments later, Bayern were celebrating a remarkable 11th consecutive Bundesliga title. About a 100 kilometres away, Dortmund, who could only manage a draw at home to Mainz, were crestfallen and left to rue what could have been.
Serial winners
Bayern are, by some distance, the most successful and most famous club in Germany. One could even say they are the face of the Bundesliga; such is their dominance of the top division that no other team even comes close.
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Last season was the 33rd time they have won the league, miles ahead of the next two teams on the honours list – Dortmund and Borussia Moenchengladbach – with five triumphs each.
Bayern were founded in early 1900 by a group of players, and it would take the club more than 30 years to win their first national championship, in 1932. Interestingly, Bayern were not among the founding members of the Bundesliga when the league was launched in 1963. They only made it to the top tier after gaining promotion in 1965, and became champions for the first time four years later.
It was in the 1970s when Bayern rose to prominence as one of Europe’s powerhouses. Led by captain Franz Beckenbauer, they conquered the continent and won the European Cup three years in a row from 1974 to 1976.
In all, Bayern have 33 league championships, six European Cup and Champions League titles, and a hatful of other trophies including the UEFA Cup, Super Cup and two Fifa Club World Cups.
Star power
Some of the world’s most famous footballers have turned out in Bayern’s signature red-and-white jersey over the decades. German stars such as Gerd Muller, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Oliver Kahn, Lothar Matthaus and Thomas Muller have all gone on to star for both club and country.
Bayern have also attracted many foreign players such as Franck Ribery (France), Hasan Salihamidzic (Bosnia), Robert Lewandowski (Poland), Giovane Elber (Brazil) and Arjen Robben (Netherlands).
Football fans in Singapore had the chance to watch Bayern in the flesh earlier this week, when the Bavarians came to town as part of their Audi Summer Tour to play the final match of the Singapore Festival of Football Driven by CDG Zig event.
Playing against Liverpool in front of a 49,983-strong crowd at the National Stadium in Kallang on Wednesday (Aug 2), Bayern displayed plenty of tenacity and determination to bounce back from a two-goal deficit to defeat the English Premier League club 4-3 in an end-to-end thriller.
Frans Kratzig, an exciting 20-year-old full-back, smashed in the winning goal in the 90th minute that saw Bayern win the Singapore Trophy presented by Audi and Standard Chartered.
Manager Thomas Tuchel brought a strong squad to the Lion City, and he named the likes of Swiss goalkeeper Yann Sommer, German winger Leroy Sane, Canadian left-back Alphonso Davies and new South Korean defender Kim Min-jae in his starting line-up. On the bench were defender Matthijs de Ligt, midfielder Leon Goretzka and pacey forward Kingsley Coman.
Down 0-2 in the first 30 minutes, Bayern hit back with goals from Serge Gnabry and Sane to level the scores at the interval. The Reds retook the lead in the second half, but Bayern displayed that trademark fighting spirit once more as Josip Stanisic equalised 10 minutes from time. With momentum once more on the Germans’ side, the stage was set for Kratzig to fire home from just inside the box to seal a dramatic win.
Sure, this was merely a pre-season tune-up game and perhaps it’s true that one shouldn’t read too much into such results. The performance and intense work rate by Bayern, however, suggest that they will once again be the team to beat in the Bundesliga.
A 12th straight league title is probably on the cards, but it’s safe to say that another Champions League crown – the pinnacle achievement of European club football – is what Tuchel and the club’s higher-ups desire most of all.
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