Where do the pieces in the Bayern Munich midfield puzzle fit?

RedBrothersUnited are intrigued by Pep Guardiola’s options in Bayern Munich’s midfield, but is it dangerous to break up a Champions League winning partnership?

Last season Bayern Munich joined the elite group of teams to have won the Treble. There has been no mystery to their achievement, as they possess the most dynamic team in the game. Heynckes’s short tenure with the German champions proved to be one fairy tale. His last assignment bringing him success with total appreciation. A lot of credit goes to him for bringing in the best possible system of football to the German side by playing a 4-2-3-1 formation. Shutting Barcelona down doesn’t just bring the world to a jaw dropping shock but also highlights the weakness of possession play when the opponents are able to man mark and press.

An admirer of ‘Total Football’ and a pupil of Johan Cryuff , Pep Guardiola takes over as the new manager of Bayern Munich. He comes as a proud player at Barca and a manager who made sure the Catalan club enters the critics war on the best team ever. On this principle, he came up with a 4-3-3 regime with a Centre Forward playing as a ‘False 9’, whereby he had the ultimate genius in the form of Leo Messi.

Bastian Schweinsteiger and Javi Martinez, the midfield duo have created a partnership of uniformity and stability. Their game plans have been so straight in how to anchor the team while attacking, and equally good, perhaps better, when the tables are turned. Bayern’s success include a lot of names, but without the combination of these two players the team stats looking empty and lacks the tactics that has been inducted by Heynckes.

Guardiola has always been keen to play with one defensive midfielder. As seen at Barca, Busquets filled in that role. The interesting question lies as to how Guardiola can make a team better which is already winning everything. The challenge that lies ahead of him is whether he sticks to the system adopted by Heynckes or switches to his preferred gameplan. To shake up the formation to his suited 4-1-4-1, Guardiola is dangerously reverting back to his one defensive midfield strategy. With the likes of Gotze and Alcantra joining the ranks of this loaded team, it seems that it could be Bastian Schweinsteiger of all people, facing the axe.

Guardiola once begged his former club to sign Martinez from Bilbao, to which Bayern acted sooner and broke Martinez’s buyout clause. Martinez, a versatile player who can also play as a fully fledged centre back is also tipped to be the next Pep Guardiola as a player. As was Busquets, but Martinez is credited even better for his distributing abilities when his team is in charge. Guardiola, with one defensive midfielder can only push Martinez back, as he always liked a ball-playing centre back, Pique-esque.

It can be observed that Pep has been trying to mix the systems of his former club and the already crafted genre of football played by Heynckes. In his first competitive game in charge against their mighty rivals Dortmund, Pep had a bitter taste of his own medicine when his very own one defensive midfield set up was exploited by the verticality of BVB. Team selection remains the major dilemma that Pep faces. With quality in midfield in all areas, his line-up is what everyone is looking forward to. The positives though, with Schweini & Martinez in the defensive midfield area are that he can use Gotze in his ‘False 9’ position and Alcantara floating around him. Robben, despite being a sensation off late, is probably the only player who lacks the passing ability that Pep demands.

A last moment snub by Thiago to Manchester United and a much debated transfer of Mario Gotze has now put the focus on the future of Bastian Schweinsteiger. With Martinez already vital to Guardiola’s plans, a move away from Bayern, unless given sufficient playing time may well be on the cards for Schweini. Another player whose stint at Bayern is likely to fade soon is Arjen Robben, who is seen to be replaced by the ever improving Thomas Muller.

Guardiola’s time at Barcelona can also be remembered when he let go the likes of Deco, Ronaldinho and Yaya Toure whose absence was not much felt as their shoes had been filled by their La Masia products Messi, Iniesta and Busquets. This could well be a blessing in disguise for the club in the case of Schweinsteiger and Robben. If they do decide to part ways with the club in the near future or can well be a nail in the coffin to his established heroes. What remains to see now is what Pep has in store. With the history that he boasts, he has ample time to throw in all his dice and adapt a tactical framework that betters the benchmark set by the treble winners of Germany and his own exploits at Barcelona.