Bayern Munich have enjoyed a solid start to the season under Vincent Kompany. They have delivered two wins against Wolfsburg and Freiburg. Bayern would have liked to win comfortably against Wolfsburg, but individual mistakes provided a route back into the game for the hosts during the second half. However, the performance against Freiburg was impressive as they dominated from start to finish.
Die Roten also booked their place in the second round of DFB Pokal after beating SSV Ulm. It has been a productive first month for Vincent Kompany. He couldn’t have asked for a better start than this in a role that came to him after Bayern faced problems in getting their top targets to replace Thomas Tuchel.
After a dismal run of form during Ruckrunde, Bayern announced the decision to part ways with Thomas Tuchel in February. They wanted to replace Tuchel with Bayer Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso. However, the Spaniard decided to spend one more season in Leverkusen.
Bayern tried to get Julian Nagelsmann, Oliver Glasner, and Ralf Rangnick after missing out on Alonso. They even considered keeping Tuchel for one more season, but couldn’t reach an agreement with the German coach. Bayern shifted their attention to Vincent Kompany at the end of last season. Several eyebrows were raised since Kompany had just overseen relegation with Burnley in the Premier League. While talking to SportBild (via iMiaSanMia), Bayern CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen insisted that Kompany’s philosophy and work over the last few years are the reasons behind his appointment.
“We shouldn’t reduce Vincent Kompany to last season in England. Before that, he achieved promotion more than comfortably with an incredible 101 points and an outstanding goal difference through his active and aggressive football. Vincent brings something that is good for our players: he gives them energy, knows exactly what is important, and even gives some of them a hug when things aren’t working out.”
– Bayern Munich CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen
Kompany and Bayern will be vulnerable to intense criticism whenever the team hits a rough patch this season. The Belgian coach will need silverware in his debut season in Munich to justify the club’s decision to hire him in the summer.
There is added pressure on Bayern to regain the Bundesliga title after finishing third last season. Moreover, the Bavarian faithful is hoping to see Die Roten reach the Champions League final since it will take place at Allianz Arena. Moreover, the DFB Pokal is also a must-win trophy for Bayern after failing to win it since the treble-winning campaign in 2020.
Kompany has a point to prove this season since no one expected him to land the head coach role at Bayern. His appointment needs to work for Christoph Freund and Max Eberl since it was the first big decision made by the duo at Bayern. The start has been good, but Kompany has a long way to go in justifying Die Roten’s faith in him.
