The recent news that Bayern Munich dispensed with the services of Croatian head coach Niko Kovac did not come as a major surprise. It always felt like he was just one bad result or run away from the sack. The bad result that ended his Bayern tenure was a 5-1 drubbing at Eintracht Frankfurt at the weekend.
Kovac had been in charge of the team from Munich for just 16 months. Soon after his sacking thoughts turned to who would replace him. The list of candidates is a notable who’s who of unemployed European coaches.
Mourinho the favourite for Bayern job
The man who has emerged as the favourite for the Bayern job at odds of 5/4 is former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese boss has already conquered the English, Italian and Spanish leagues. However, he is yet to manage in the German Bundesliga, which would complete a nice quartet of leagues for the former Manchester United boss.
Mourinho has been waiting for the right opportunity to come along before returning to football. The 56-year-old has been out of the game since leaving Manchester United last December. He has been linked with a number of jobs, but the Bayern job may be of interest to him. He has in the past stated his admiration for the German top-flight.
Bayern one of the top clubs in world football
If Mourinho were to move to Germany it would likely only be to Bayern Munich. They are one of the biggest clubs in world football. They are certainly a club with enough stature to attract a high-profile boss like Mourinho.
The appointment of Kovac in the summer of 2018 was always a gamble. However, the club’s hierarchy’s insistence on a coach that spoke fluent restricted their options. Whether that will be the main consideration this time around is unclear.
Mourinho is a linguist and reportedly was learning German doing his time at Manchester United. If that is the case, then this just may be the perfect storm for Die Bayern.
Unlike Kovac, Mourinho is a high-profile boss who has won major trophies with big clubs in the past. Kovac is just starting in his coaching career, while Mourinho is highly experienced at the top-level on the game.
On experience, he seems a better fit than Kovac. Whether the Bayern fans would warm to the Portuguese’s style of play is another matter. He is famously for his pragmatism, but some of his best teams have played exciting football.
Bayern need to make a trademark recovery in title
The weekend defeat against Eintracht Frankfurt leaves Bayern Munich four points behind surprise leaders Monchengladbach in the race for top spot in the Bundesliga. The story is a familiar one, as last season the Bavarian giants chased down Dortmund to retain the title, despite Dortmund enjoying an excellent start to their campaign in the German top-flight.
Once again, Die Bayern are chasing the leaders and not leading the way. This season was considered a transitional season (no I am not fond of that phrase either, but I couldn’t think of a better fit). The exits of long-serving veteran stars like Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben was always going to have an effect on the dressing room, even if the pair were not as regular starters as in their younger years.
However, Bayern have top talent in that squad. With the right coach in charge, they have the quality to retain the German title and go deep into the Champions League once again. If Mourinho is the next Bayern boss, then one thing is for sure, it will be fascinating to see what the Bavarians could achieve with a boss with Mourinho’s record of winning big trophies.
Will Jose Mourinho be the next Bayern Munich boss?
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