Modern day football game has been best described through its dynamism.
It’s not necessarily the best attribute to use in a sport where everything can be so short-lived and last no longer than a blink of an eye. For young players coming through a demanding world of professional football – such as Bayern Munich talent Renato Sanches – patience truly is a virtue.
Portuguese international’s name has been echoing around since 2016 and it is easy to forget the former Benfica teenager is still only 21 years of age.
And in the week he went back to his boyhood club with the Bavarian giants, Renato Sanches will have gone a full circle from a rapid rise, devastating fall and a triumphant ascend all over again.
Rise
It was at the Stadium of Light – Estadio da Luz – in Lisbon two years ago that world first took notice of a young Renato Sanches. A meteoric rise would make him a European champion with Portugal, a winner of the European Golden Boy award and the newest member of Bayern Munich on the back of a €35 million deal in just a couple of months’ time.
The most expensive Portuguese player to leave the domestic league – and also the first Portuguese to join the Bavarian side – would arrive in Munich on the back of high expectations.
Described as ‘one of the best young players by far in Europe’ by none other by at the time Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola, Portuguese youngster Renato Sanches became a victim of poor timing and the lack of mental strength to cope with a sudden – and huge – change at a fragile time.
He wasn’t the one to blame. The football industry has no time to spare and demands instant results, which a young boy away from his family, in a new country, without a word of German in his vocabulary just could not provide.
Without a goal or an assist in 25 appearances across all competition for Bayern Munich in his debut season, Sanches was on the margins. The Portuguese youngster made only 4 starts and completed 90 minutes in only one of those.
Fall
As limelight grew, Renato Sanches’ confidence dwindled and disappeared completely – transforming the youngster into a shadow of his former self. A loan spell at the Premier League side Swansea City was supposed to help him get back up to his feet while, in reality, it did the opposite.
The Islanders’ football turned out to be too much for a young boy like Sanches whose time in Wales will be remembered by passing mistakes and – most notably – a pass into the advertising hoardings in a 1-0 to Chelsea.
Hamstring injuries in consecutive matches only hampered his attempts to prove worth at Swansea. Without a minute of competitive action since January 2018 until the end of the season, Renato Sanches returned to Bayern Munich well aware of his situation.
But Bayern Munich were not ready to give up on him.
Rise No.2
The tide of change struck upon Bayern Munich in the summer of 2018. Heading into a new era on the back of a Bundesliga title-winning season, the Bavarians hired Niko Kovac as their new manager.
“Niko will try and bring him back to his old strength. It’s an exciting project.”, chairman of Bayern Munich Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said.
As a man who built his reputation at Eintracht Frankfurt of an educator who knows his way around the young and the talented, Kovac embraced Renato Sanches and should be applauded for helping the Portuguese get out of a dark place.
All it took was Kovac’s support and an emotion-bursting night back in Lisbon for Renato Sanches to get back up on their feet. The young midfielder put in a gargantuan display against his former club – scoring a goal in the process – and getting a standing ovation for doing so.
Sanches refused to celebrate, paid his respect to Benfica and got just the thing he needed in return – a heartwarming, morale-boosting support that will undoubtedly facilitate his road to recovery.
“I’m so happy that I’m able to experience an evening like this in Lisbon and I’d like to thank the Benfica fans [for their applause after my goal. It was a very special moment for me and I enjoyed it very much.” Sanches enthused after his first Bayern Munich start in 16 months.
What’s Next?
Renato Sanches will know better than to get carried away. The experience taught him that, after all. Albeit a young player at 21, he will be wise enough not to repeat the same old mistakes and will bide his time.
Bayern Munich are currently looking at 1/20 betting odds to defend their domestic title and 7/1 as far as the Champions League is concerned. Niko Kovac is sure to reward Sanches with more than enough opportunity to continue his development across the season.
Having made such a strong impact this early in the campaign, Renato Sanches finally has a great view of the horizon ahead.
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