Mob Deep: Lothar Matthäus says Bayern Munich has “20 potential starting XI players” on its roster

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31 October 2023, 05:15 yayınlandı

When former Bayern Munich and Germany great Lothar Matthäus takes a gander at his old club’s roster, he is overwhelmed by its depth.

“When everyone is fit, the current squad is the best equipped Bayern squad of all-time in terms of quality. Bayern now has 20 potential starting XI players. In my time there were 13, later 16, 17. However, today you can make 5 substitutions,” Matthäus told Bild (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “A year and a half or two years ago I criticized that the Bayern squad wasn’t so deep. I don’t think it’s because of my criticism, but there has been a rethink. Bayern have been very active in the last two transfer windows, and I have praised (sporting director Hasan “Brazzo” Salihamidžić) for that.”

Despite all of that depth, though, Matthäus thinks Bayern Munich’s attack is not quite as powerful as it used to be.

“I wouldn’t say it’s (the best) in attack. For example, (Franck) Ribéry, (Arjen) Robben, (Robert) Lewandowski and (Thomas) Müller, who is always there, always stood out a bit more (than the current attackers) – without wanting to offend anyone,” Matthäus said. “Big names don’t win the Champions League alone, big teams do. I already said before the games against Paris: Bayern is capable of winning the title this season. They are one of the favorites, but not the top favorite. There’s Real Madrid and Manchester City. And don’t underestimate Benfica and Napoli.”

Bayern Munich’s depth does figure to play a role against any team it draws in the Champions League. There will not be any easy matchups, but you would probably be hard-pressed to find any team with a roster as loaded with talent from top-to-bottom remaining in the competition.