Bundesliga
Tuchel farewell in Munich: rebellion or end without a title?
Thomas Tuchel will only coach Bayern until the end of the season. photo
© Swen Pförtner/dpa
Thomas Tuchel will leave FC Bayern in the summer – at the latest. What impact does this have on the rest of Munich’s season? A look at similar examples from FCB’s recent past.
The Munich team hope to release new energy in their completely unsettled star ensemble in order to have a successful spring, especially in the Champions League.
Or will the impending separation cause coach and team to divide further? Is Tuchel losing his assertiveness in view of the foreseeable departure? Then, in the event of further bankruptcies and an exit in the round of 16 of the premier class against outsiders Lazio Rome, it could also happen that the coach has to leave even earlier.
A look at Bayern’s recent past shows that early announced coach departures had very different effects on the team:
Ottmar Hitzfeld (2008)
Hitzfeld’s second commitment to Bayern as the successor to Felix Magath, who is on leave, lasts almost a year and a half. At the beginning of 2008 he announced that he would not extend the contract again. That doesn’t hurt success. The veteran coach, who is highly valued in Munich, once again leads Bayern to win the Bundesliga and DFB Cup double.
Louis van Gaal (2011)
After the double in his first season, the Dutchman’s second season in Munich was less successful. In the DFB Cup, they were eliminated in the semi-finals against Schalke, and the championship was practically lost at that point. At the beginning of March, Bayern announced – as they did with Tuchel – that they would be terminating their contract early in the summer. But the stubborn coach can’t make it until then. After further setbacks in the fight for the Champions League places, van Gaal will be on leave in April.
Jupp Heynckes (2013)
The veteran German coach is signing at Säbener Straße for two years – an extension of the contract will not come about, mainly because Bayern can win Pep Guardiola as their preferred candidate from the summer of 2013. The constellation seems to particularly motivate Heynckes: He leads the Munich team to the first treble by a German team, with the Champions League triumph against Borussia Dortmund at London’s Wembley Stadium as the highlight.
Pep Guardiola (2016)
Heynckes’ successor Guardiola also made it clear months before the end of his contract that there would be no extension. The Catalan is heading to England, his successor Carlo Ancelotti has six months to prepare for Munich. During this time, Guardiola made another attempt to win the Champions League, but failed in the semi-finals for the third time in three years. By winning the double, he said goodbye in a more than reconciled way.
Hansi Flick (2021)
In the middle of the corona pandemic, Flick achieved something historic when he led Bayern to six titles (championship, DFB Cup, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, DFL Supercup and Club World Cup) – there had only been such a sextuple in Europe before FC Barcelona succeeded under Guardiola. In the second year, however, there was such a severe crisis between the coach and the club management that Flick announced in an interview without consultation that he wanted to terminate his contract early at the end of the season. At that point, Bayern were no longer in the Champions League and DFB Cup – but Flick was at least celebrating the championship title as a farewell.