In an acute personnel shortage, FC Bayern is testing an old friend: Jérôme Boateng could receive a new contract. It’s not just sporting reasons that speak against a commitment. But the 35-year-old also has arguments on his side.
A few days after Coach Thomas Tuchel all three central defenders for the DFB Cup game against Preußen Münster had broken away, rumors arose about Jérôme Boateng being brought back. At first, most fans probably thought that there wasn’t much to these reports. Despite FC Bayern’s long history and the many successes they achieved together, most arguments currently speak against a commitment. But not all of them.
Tuchel: “Doors are always open”
Boateng has now been training at FC Bayern since Sunday. A decision should be made by the end of the week at the latest, sports director Christoph Freund announced before departure for the Champions League game in Copenhagen (FC Copenhagen versus FC Bayern on Tuesday, October 3rd, in the radio report) at. “At the moment he is training. He also lives in Munich. We will have discussions again and then we will see what is the best solution for all sides,” said Freund and announced: “First and foremost, play “Sporting considerations play a role. The fact is that just a week ago we had three central defenders injured. So you think about: What can happen in the next few weeks, what can happen until winter. We’ve dealt with that.”
When asked about the personnel, Thomas Tuchel said before the Champions League group game at FC Copenhagen: “The presumption of innocence applies when proceedings are suspended. Because that is the case, we as a football club have the right to make football decisions meeting,” he promoted Bayern’s approach. The Bayern coach said it simply had to be possible to let “a deserving player” train with us: “The doors are always open.”
Boateng’s qualities: Good opening of the game, high pace
What the people of Munich think about “first and foremost”: Boateng knows FC Bayern like few active players. He played in Munich for ten years, won the German championship nine times, the DFB Cup five times and the Champions League twice. During this successful phase he shaped this club, just as the club shaped it. “He was a first-class player and played sensationally. If he’s at the level I know him to be, he can help Bayern Munich,” said Long-time FC Bayern assistant coach Hermann Gerland on Sunday in Blickpunkt Sport.
In addition, his great strengths back then were qualities that Tuchel is currently missing in his defense: Boateng was one of the fastest central defenders in Bundesliga history and could hit precise, long passes. A skill that Munich has lost this season.
Blatant weaknesses in the FC Bayern defense
When Boateng left FC Bayern a little over two years ago, coach Julian Nagelsmann no longer had any use for the then 32-year-old. Dayot Upamecano had just moved to the Isar and joined an illustrious group: the polyvalent Lucas Hernández and Benjamin Pavard, plus Niklas Süle and Tanguy Nianzou – Munich’s central defense seemed to be set up for years to come. For Boateng, time was up in Munich.
But two years later, only Upamecano remains in Munich of this scaffolding. Nianzou was never able to assert himself, Süle was deemed too bad, and Pavard and Hernández no longer wanted to play for FC Bayern. And so the Munich defense team is not only extremely thinly staffed at the moment, but has also proven to be extremely error-prone during these two years. Coach Thomas Tuchel recently had to observe this against Leipzig when Upamecano and Min-jae Kim, who was hired because of his reliability, made a mistake. Perhaps it can be justified in this way that those responsible in Munich want to turn back time a little. Boateng is the only former defender currently available for this project.
Boateng in Lyon: Friction and recently hardly any playing time
But anyone who dreams back to a time when FC Bayern only conceded 17 goals in a season (2015/16) is likely to have a rude awakening. The current team will reach this record by the halfway point of the season if they concede goals at the same rate as before. In Boateng’s last season in Munich, the record champions conceded 44 goals – a negative record this century. In addition, Boateng, who was subsequently deemed no longer good enough for FC Bayern, is now 35 years old. And even in his best times, Boateng was always known for mistakes – and also made a few missteps at FC Bayern, which is why Uli Hoeneß advised Boateng “as a friend” in 2019 to “look for a new club”.
Boateng commuted back and forth between the bench and the stands at his last employer. He was rarely seen on the pitch. So far in 2023 he has played 136 minutes. There was no getting past Lyon’s own Sinaly Diomandé (21) and Leipzig newcomer Castello Lukeba (20). There were also fluctuating performances, a high salary, friction with teammates and coaches: the star signing Boateng became a problem and so Lyon came to the same conclusion as FC Bayern in 2021 and let him leave for a free transfer. He couldn’t find a new club afterwards.
Charged with Mayhem and insult
But there are also the non-sporting aspects. Things have gone much worse for Boateng off the football field in recent years. He is being prosecuted for two counts of assault. He is accused of beating, injuring and insulting his former partner and mother of his twins in July 2018. He was convicted in two instances. A week ago, the conviction of 1.2 million euros in damages due to procedural errors was overturned. A new court date will probably not take place this year. Until then, Boateng is legally considered innocent.
“There are proceedings against the private individual. That is currently suspended, so it is his private story. And that is why it is not an issue for us at the moment,” said Freund on Monday, describing Boateng as a “pleasant man who is also good at things team has arrived.” Things are different for some fans. Boateng already wore an FC Bayern uniform at the FC Bayern legends game against Borussia Dortmund on the tenth anniversary of the Champions League final at Wembley. The club received a lot of criticism for this. It is at least doubtful that the negative response would be different if there was an actual commitment.
Friend: “That applies presumption of innocence”
“Everyone can have their own opinion, but the presumption of innocence applies,” said Freund. The decisive factor is therefore what is best for FC Bayern in terms of sport. The club, which is longing for peace after the turbulent last season, would bring a whole range of new problems to Säbener Straße with this commitment, which could ultimately also affect the sporting areas.
The fact that the Munich team could now get involved in this project, which is also fraught with sporting risks, shows how great the need and the need to catch up that this transfer period has left behind is. And how deep the shock from the cup game against Münster is. “They’ve lined themselves up too thin,” complained former FC Bayern defender Markus Babbel in Blickpunkt Sport: “You had enough time to put together an optimal squad. That’s disappointing, that’s not Bayern-like. Normally they always have this foresight.” It remains to be seen whether Boateng can now ease the burden a little or perhaps even increase the problems in Munich.
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Source: BR24Sport October 2nd, 2023 – 6:30 p.m
