Four reasons why Bayern Munich won’t win the Champions League (Part 2)
Robben and Ribery injuries
In Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery, Bayern Munich possesses two of the best wingers in the world. On their day, both mercurial forwards claim a genuine claim for best winger in the world title. Franck Ribery has been struggling with
form and fitness for much of the last season. Earlier this season, Ribery’s scandals with a glamour escort were made public and such revelations have clearly not helped the player pick up his form. To make matters worse, the French wizard has not featured
for the Bavarian giants since September with an injury. According to the latest reports, there is significant work to be done by the club medical staff before Ribery can take to the pitch again.
Arjen Robben, the glass man, got a nasty injury on International duty and has not featured for the club for the last few months. The tricky Dutch winger is longer-term injury causality and a return date cannot be set for him.
In absence of these two wing wizards, Bayern stand no chance of progression past the quarter-finals. The two players have the ability to decide a game on their own; as observed last year, and without their services, Bayern attack
will be toothless, impotent and predictable. Even if they make a return in time for the knock-out stages, it will still take significant time for the duo to attain full fitness and even longer to attain Champions League winning form.
Lack of goals upfront
Goals are a commodity Bavarians have found hard coming by this season. The fact that midfield general Bastian Schweinsteiger is the second highest goals scorer for the club with six goals in all competitions clearly showcases this
claim. Die Roten top scorer, so far this season, is Mario Gomez. The former VFB Stuttgart marksman found life hard in Munich and prior to his 10 goals this season; he had only scored 14 goals in 45 appearances.
Even though the player has started to find the back of the net in the last few games, his performances are hardly fitting of a player for whom Bayern paid 35 million Euros. On European nights, Gomez spends the evening in the pockets
of opposition defenders and until he truly proves his big match pedigree, Mario will remain a big match flop.
With Robben, Ribery and Olic out of the picture, Bavarian giants will have a tough time plying open the disciplined defences of European contenders.
Squad depth
Apart from a quality laden midfield, Bayern Munich doesn’t have the necessary squad depth two compete on both domestic and continental front. Starting off with striking department, Miroslav Klose, for all his International exploits,
has been abysmal for Bayern Munich in Bundesliga. The German International has managed a poor 3 goals from his last 28 league appearances and just 2 goals from his last 10 continental games. Ivica Olic was pretty much the man in attack last season but the
Croatian is out injured – a return date for the Bavarian forward is yet to be set.
Thomas Muller is a superb link-up player with a glittering career ahead of him but he is not the type of a player who can be relied upon to lead the line on the continental stage; Bayern need a forward in the mould of Didier Drogba
or Samuel Eto’o for continental glory.
Moving on to defence, the fact that Martin Demichlis and Van Buyten are the first choice central defenders speaks volumes about the lack of quality in the Bavarian rearguard. Should either of the two get injured, it’s arguable whether the likes of Bruno
and Holger Badstuber can hold the Munich defences together.
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