Leipzig game the first time Bayern played really well – Ancelotti

Carlo Ancelotti says the recent victory over RB Leipzig was the first time Bayern Munich reached their full potential under his management and expects it to be a turning point in their season.

Bayern cruised to a 3-0 home victory over title rivals Leipzig in their last match of 2016, opening up a three-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga.

It was the first time Ancelotti felt his side had hit their top level after a mixed first half of the season that saw them finish second to Atletico Madrid in their Champions League group and struggle for consistency in the Bundesliga.

“It was an important game for a lot of reasons, because until then, we didn’t play so well,” Ancelotti told ESPN.

“Against Leipzig was the first game where we played really well. We played against a strong team that did really well until now and they were in second position. 

“But the game, we played really well, so this gives us more confidence for the future.”

Ancelotti feels it is an easy task to motivate Bayern’s squad – even though they have won the Bundesliga in four consecutive seasons – and reiterated he is not making major changes following the reign of Pep Guardiola.

He said: “When you speak about a professional player, it means to speak about a player that all the time has the game to be back now every single day, to be focused every single training, to try to win every single year.

“To motivate this kind of player is really, really easy, because they have the quality to be at the top also mentally.

“I found a fantastic club, first of all, and a team with good knowledge. I think the experience they had with [Pep] Guardiola helped them to be strong in possession, to be strong in transition.

“So I found a team with a lot of quality. I didn’t want to do a revolution, because the team doesn’t need a revolution. 

“I want to follow the line that Guardiola put in the last three years and try to do some changes – maybe to play more vertical, play with possession.”

Bayern have a friendly against AS Eupen in Doha on Tuesday and return to Bundesliga action with an away game against Freiburg on January 20.