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Thomas Müller was sidelined during Niko Kovac‘s tenure at Bayern. Now the Croatian admits his mistakes in dealing with Müller.
Munich – Between July 2018 and November 2019, the 2014 world champion was sidelined under Kovac and even seriously considered changing clubs.
The relationship between Niko Kovac (l.) and Thomas Müller at FC Bayern was considered tense. © Kerstin Dlitzsch via www.imago-images.de
At the time, Kovac had publicly stated that Müller would “get his minutes when there was a need.” This statement was widely criticized as it portrayed Müller as a mere emergency solution. On the show Sky90-Kovac now admitted that he had “simply made a mistake” with this formulation: “I thought I was well versed in German, but that was my mistake.”
Looking back, the now 53-year-old would have handled the situation differently: “From today’s perspective, Thomas should have played a lot more back then.” The former Bayern coach explained that he had greater competition for Müller’s position, including players like James Rodríguez and Robert Lewandowski weighted. “Back then, James Rodríguez came from Real Madrid with a salary that would make you fall over. Up front you had Robert Lewandowski, Franck Ribéry and Serge Gnabry – and Thomas was the ten. It was already clear what I had to do,” said Kovac, describing the challenge he faced at the time.
Müller thought about saying goodbye to Bayern
Despite this competition, Müller, according to Kovac, should have taken on a larger role. The 35-year-old himself recently said in an interview with kicker confirmed that during this phase he seriously thought about leaving FC Bayern. “It’s not just about the money, it’s about being on the pitch,” said the offensive player.
Despite the tensions at the time, the former Bayern coach also spoke highly of the veteran and his importance for the club on the show: “Thomas is FC Bayern Munich. He is like Lahm, Schweinsteiger or Kahn – an identification figure.”
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Kovac was convinced that Müller will have a future with the German record champions beyond the end of his current contract, which runs until 2025. “FC Bayern would do well to integrate him into the club after his career.”
With these reflective words, Kovac not only admitted his mistakes, but also recognized Müller’s importance for FC Bayern – both as a player and as a club legend.
