Triple threat
May 3, 2010
Bayern Munich barely had a chance to celebrate the results that, barring a miracle, sealed them this year's Bundesliga crown, when thoughts turned to the future. In the coming weeks, the team will try to seal its place in history by winning the German Cup and the Champions League.
Two more wins would make this squad the most successful in the club's storied history. But even if they come up short, the 2009-10 edition of Bayern is a team unlike any other to take the pitch in red in Munich.
The squad's character is the product of coach Louis van Gaal's willingness to break with tradition, a quality that saw Bayern stumble out of the blocks early this season - and that almost cost the Dutchman his job.
But van Gaal stuck to his guns, and Munich are now reaping the benefits.
Total football
The great Bayern teams of the past were structured around hard-nosed defending, a gifted playmaker and strong center forwards. The 2000-01 squad that won the Champions League, for instance, was anchored by Stefan Effenberg in midfield and Giovanni Elber up front.
Van Gaal has shifted the emphasis, changing formations from a classic 4-4-2 to an extremely flexible 4-3-3. With Miroslav Klose being used sparingly, and Mario Gomez often ineffective or injured, there's no one on this team who has slotted into the Gerd Mueller/Uli Hoeness/Elber/Roy Makaay/Luca Toni role.
Instead, Ivica Olic - himself more of a winger than a center forward - has been Bayern's most effective striker in all three competitions.
Perhaps van Gaal's most important tactical change was to move Bastian Schweinsteiger back into a dual holding midfielder role with Mark van Bommel. That has given players further forward more freedom, and Bayern now use much more of the pitch and control the ball longer than previous squads.
The idea is a modern version of the Dutch concept of “total football” from the 1970s, but to realize this vision, van Gaal had to make a number of bold - and risky - personnel decisions.
Youth movement
Great Bayern squads of the past typically consisted of players who rose to prominence with other clubs and were bought by Munich, when they were in their prime. Van Gaal has focused on homegrown youngsters - at expense of veteran stars.
The prime example is 20-year-old midfielder Thomas Mueller, who has scored 13 league goals this season, including the hattrick against Bochum on Saturday that sealed Bayern's title.
It ain't easy coming into Bayern's squad with a name like Mueller, but Thomas' season would have done even his namesake Gerd proud. Despite his tender years, it's difficult to recall a single mistake he made that cost his team.
Indeed, Bayern's turnaround coincided with his promotion to the starting 11, with van Gaal deciding not to feature either Klose or Toni, the latter of whom was unceremoniously shipped back to Italy in the winter break.
Teenie-boppers Holger Badstuber and Diego Contento also received major minutes, while some of Bayern's more expensive signings were given seats on the bench - or tickets out of town.
Nonetheless, van Gaal's daring probably would have come a cropper, had it not been for the individual brilliance of one player.
The X-Factor
Whatever way one looks at it, the MVP of this remarkable season has been Arjen Robben.
The stats alone don't tell the whole story. Others may have scored more goals, but the Dutch winger's strikes came from an array of nearly impossible positions and usually at times when Bayern needed to get a result.
Mehmet Scholl used to pull off some of these tricks for Munich, but even he wrought nowhere near the level of havoc as Robben, a lightning quick left-footer who plays on the right side and thus confronts defenders with a very unusual challenge.
Robben's emergence as one of the impact players in Europe, indeed the world, compensated for a mediocre, injury- and scandal-marred year by Franck Ribery.
Even with all of their weapons and options, Bayern remain a beatable team, and they'll probably need some luck to win the treble. But van Gaal has put together a highly unpredictable squad that is capable of achieving unique things - and looks as though it could establish itself as a European power in the years to come.
Author: Jefferson Chase
Editor Chuck Penfold