Kompany changes direction: Bayern boss adopts new squad strategy | OneFootball

In his first season, Vincent Kompany at FC Bayern relied almost exclusively on experience. But this year, the strategy is changing: The squad is smaller, the roles of the regular players are more clearly defined – and the young talents are expected to fill the gaps.

Under Kompany, the team was clearly oriented towards routine in the past season. Every position was filled with an established professional, leaving the youth with hardly any chance to assert themselves. This season, the Belgian wants to consciously take a different path, as reported by tz. The new plan: more courage, more trust in young players – and thus more playing time for the talents from the campus.

However, it is noticeable that so far, Kompany has hardly been convinced by players from the second team in the long term. This has not gone unnoticed by the club management. The missed promotion to the Regionalliga last year was already considered a setback.

Moreover, the U23 does not embody the style of play that Bayern wants to anchor as its identity in the long term: high pressing and dominant possession football. For those responsible, this is a clear indication that the structures in the lower ranks are not optimally aligned with the demands of the professionals.

Atmosphere at Bayern Campus has changed: Young talents impress

Photo: IMAGO

The situation is quite different with the younger age groups. A group of U17 and U19 players recently received more opportunities in professional training, even traveled to the Club World Cup and impressed last season with strong performances.

Players like Karl and Mike, who reached the semi-finals of the youth championship with their team, exemplify the new path. They were personally recommended by sports director Christoph Freund and youth coaches Patrick Kaniuth and Peter Gaydarov – and seized their opportunities to make a lasting impression on Kompany.

Initially, there were indeed critical voices on the campus because older talents were overlooked. But in the meantime, the mood has shifted. The young players have used their opportunity to draw attention to themselves in the first team, thus proving the skeptics wrong.

Kompany's signal for the future

Kompany's new strategy shows that FC Bayern intends to focus more on its own youth again. The reduction of the squad creates the necessary space for young players to make the leap upwards. Instead of relying solely on experienced veterans as in the previous year, Kompany wants to deliberately integrate the next generation.

For the record champions, this is a signal: The campus should not only remain a training facility but finally become a more visible part of the professional team. With the backing of Christoph Freund and the club management, this could be the beginning of a new youth offensive at FC Bayern.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.