Germany boss Hansi Flick doesn’t see why Joshua Kimmich can’t be the No. 6 for Bayern Munich

As former Bayern Munich manager Hansi Flick prepares for Germany’s upcoming slate of friendlies, it was inevitable that he was going to be asked about the recent controversy surrounding Joshua Kimmich’s rumored move from the No. 6 position to the No. 8 at Bayern Munich.

The sextuple-winning coach scoffed at the notion that Kimmich cannot be a “world class” defensive midfielder.

“I’m convinced that he is really good in this position. Half a year ago, Jo was a world-class No. 6 and now we’re questioning him? You can see in Munich that he’s someone who offers a lot of solutions with the ball, has an enormous passing quality, he can play passes really precisely and at the right pace. That’s exactly what we need in this position,” Flick told Frankfurter Allgemeine (as captured by @iMiaSanMia).

If anyone believes in Kimmich, it is Flick, who watched the 28-year-old progress from right-back to the central midfield with aplomb during Flick’s time with Bayern Munich as an assistant coach and then eventually as the head man.

Kimmich does have the chops to man the No. 6 position, but the real question might be about his desire to play there. If Kimmich dedicated himself to playing a defensive midfielder, it would save the club tens of million of euros, as the team’s stable of No. 8-type players for next season is well-stocked with Leon Goretzka, Marcel Sabitzer (at least for now), Ryan Gravenberch, and Konrad Laimer.