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Bayern Munich are, without question, the most successful club in German football, with an astounding total of 31 league titles and 20 DFB-Pokal triumphs. Along with the domestic accolades, the Bavarian club have also added six UEFA Champions League trophies to their name.
Die Roten boasts well over 290,000 registered club members, overtaking fellow European heavyweights FC Barcelona and Benfica.
Bayern Munich are one of, if not the best-run big clubs in Europe
The German juggernauts have been known for their extremely successful transfer business over the years, with acquiring free transfers being one of their specialties. Robert Lewandowski's move from Borussia Dortmund is arguably their greatest free transfer of all time, an absolute masterstroke by the Bavarian club.
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But sometimes even the best in the business can make mistakes and the Bavarians are no stranger to a few misjudgments in sales. So, let's take a look at five such players whom Bayern Munich should not have sold:
#5 David Alaba
It is no secret that Bayern Munich have been facing significant defensive problems since the departure of David Alaba in the summer transfer window. After a 5-0 hammering at the hands of Borussia Mönchengladbach early this season in the DFB Pokal, the Bavarians were shocked with four first-half goals during their 4-2 defeat to VfL Bochum in Bundesliga.
The 1-1 draw against Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League further solidified that the versatile defender was integral to the Bayern backline.
As part of the Die Roten setup for the last 13 years, Alaba made his way through the youth academy to the senior team. He has won a staggering total of 27 trophies with Bayern Munich, including two UEFA Champions Leagues.
On the other hand, the Austrian has fared considerably well in his first few months at the Santiago Bernabeu. Already a fan favorite, Alaba has performed invariably at a high level, either as a center-back or left-back. His first-half goal at the Camp Nou helped Los Blancos secure three points against arch-rivals FC Barcelona in La Liga.
#4 Mats Hummels
Even though Mats Hummels left Bayern Munich twice for Borussia Dortmund, his first departure was an extremely neglected case from the Bavarian side. The German centre-back left the club on a loan deal in the 2007-08 season with a single Bundesliga appearance under his belt.
From being an unused substitute player at Bayern, Hummels developed into one of the best central defenders in Europe at Signal Iduna Park. He won back-to-back Bundesliga titles and earned a UEFA Champions League runners-up medal under the guidance of Jurgen Klopp.
Ultimately, the Bavarians realized that Hummels' defensive abilities were too good to be ignored, and resigned him in the summer of 2016. The transfer deal was reported to be worth around €35 million.
#3 Renato Sanches
Renato Sanches joined Bayern Munich in 2016 for €35 million, making him the most expensive Portuguese player to play in the Bundesliga. He also became the first Portuguese international to play for the Bavarian club.
At the time, he was merely 18 years old, and his three seasons at the Allianz arena were nothing but underwhelming. The young midfielder made just 53 appearances across competitions at Bayern Munich and managed to score just two goals. An unproductive loan spell at Swansea city didn't help his cause either, where he infamously passed the ball to an advertising board.
There was a mounting fear that the Portuguese golden boy's case would turn into what could have been. But he was able to find his feet again at LOSC Lille, where he re-established himself as one of the finest midfield talents in Europe. Sanches helped Lille defy the odds of winning Ligue 1, defeating Paris Saint-Germain. He made 23 appearances in the title-winning season.
#2 Lucio
Lucio was definitely the best centre-back in the Bayern Munich squad over a period of five years. During his tenure at the Allianz Arena, the defender won the DFB-Pokal trophy and three Bundesliga titles. But the Brazilian was deemed surplus to requirements by the then-manager Louis van Gaal and was sold to Inter.
After leaving Bayern Munich in 2009, Lucio would go on to have the most successful term of his career. He was made the captain of the Brazilian national team, and he also won the iconic treble with Inter in the 2009-10 season. The Brazilian defender also got the better of his former employers in the Champions League final that season.
#1 Toni Kroos
Unsurprisingly, the number one choice on this list, Toni Kroos, was sold to Real Madrid for just a paltry amount of €25 million. This move would go down as one of the transfers of the decade, as the German transformed into one of the greatest midfielders of his generation at the Bernabeu.
The Bavarian club did not value him before he went on to achieve even greater success at Real Madrid. The club offered him a contract worth 40 percent less than what Kroos demanded, which was an utter disrespect to his world-beating abilities.
It was a rare lapse in judgment by one of, if not the most competently run clubs in Europe. Die Roten underestimated Kroos' potential. The 2014 World Cup winner was one of Los Blancos' midfield pillars in their historic three-peat UEFA Champions league triumph from 2016 to 2019. He still continues to be first team regular at Real Madrid.
