10 players whose careers dipped after joining Bayern Munich

#3: Mario Gotze

Mario Gotze found it tough to book a berth in the starting XI.

There couldn't be a sadder sight for a football fan than watching Gotze's downfall at Bayern Munich. The 25-year-old attacking midfielder wouldn't have dreamt about warming the benches after scoring the winner in World Cup Final.

Bayern Munich roped in Gotze for a sum of €37 million from bitter rivals Borussia Dortmund in 2013. Until Ozil made his move to Arsenal, Gotze remained the most expensive German player of all time. The reason he joined Bayern was to work with Spanish mastermind Josep Guardiola who had recently arrived at the Allianz himself.

However, things didn't turn out as good as expected. Bayern's midfield consists of heavyweights Mueller, Robben, Martinez and Ribery. Gotze found it hard to break this deadlock and book a starting berth under Guardiola. In the meanwhile, injuries did their jobs in limiting his playing time at Bavaria.

As Guardiola started losing trust regarding Gotze, the German found himself at the fringes more often. The midfielder's agent accused Guardiola of using the midfielder in small and less attractive games and dropping him for the big clashes.

Though Gotze did win trophies at the Allianz, his contribution was next to minimal. Frustrated with lack of playing time, the 'German Messi' forced his way back to Dortmund in 2016. Although Gotze remains an important part at the Signal Iduna Park, he seems far from the dynamic midfield enforcer that made him the hottest prospect in German football.