3) Bayern Munich
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If Bayern Munich’s current squad were split into two different teams, even the second-string side would be able to compete in the Bundesliga and probably finish midtable. Such is the incredible depth of this squad that had Carlo Ancelotti not won the league it would have been the biggest failure of his managerial career.
Jerome Boateng and Mats Hummels had able cover in Javi Martinez and the young Joshua Kimmich (who was also deployed in a defensive midfield role) while Douglas Costa and Kingsley Coman assured Ancelotti of options if Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben were not available. And even though Thomas Muller has had a poor season, he is a very capable option off the bench in a formation that only has a place for Robert Lewandowski up front.
In all, 16 players clocked over 1,000 minutes in the Bundesliga alone as Die Roten cruised to their fifth consecutive Bundesliga title. The only criticism that could be levelled at Ancelotti is that he was unable to win more with this team. They were eliminated by his former club Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals while Borussia Dortmund knocked them out in the DFB-Pokal semi-finals.
Winning the league has now become the norm at Bayern Munich. The fans and the board know it is just the minimum they can achieve as they strive to win the European crown again following their 2012/13 treble-winning campaign.
