Former Bayern Munich manager, Ottmar Hitzfeld has backed the present coach Hansi Flick to guide the 2019/20 treble winners to a new era of dominance in the UEFA Champions League.
Flick took over at the Allianz Arena last November after replacing sacked Niko Kovac and led the club to a Bundesliga and DFB Cup double. He led to the treble beating French Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final in Lisbon.
Hitzfeld, who had won the European championship as coach of both Bayern and Borussia Dortmund’s said a special team could now replicate what the club achieved in the 1970s by winning multiple European titles.
“He worked hard for everything and in his new position as head coach he’s been sensational.
“Hansi Flick has seized his chance and is the father of this success. Along with his sporting ability, what marks him out above all are his human qualities, because he’s an absolute team player and lends an ear to all of his colleagues.
“Flick can shape an era with this generation of Bayern players like we last saw with the European Cup triumphs of 1974, 1975, and 1976,” Hitzfeld told Spox when discussing Flick’s impact since stepping up to replace Niko Kovac.
The dominance of Bayern Munich in the 70s
The Bayern side of the 1970s experienced success as they won the club’s first three European Cup titles. They had the likes Franz Beckenbauer, Uli Hoeneß, Gerd Müller, and current club CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge as its players.
The former Dortmund coach won the prize for the BVB first time in their history in 1997. He then won it the 4th time for Bayern in 2001.
While expecting several of Bayern’s continental rivals to come back stronger in 2020/21, Hitzfeld feels the German champions have a “good chance” of defending the Champions League title.
“A golden generation is developing around the axis of [Manuel] Neuer, David Alaba, Thomas Müller and Robert Lewandowski.
“A lot of young players like Joshua Kimmich and Serge Gnabry are already key players, and they’re incredibly steady for their age,” ,” the 71-year-old said.
Hitzfeld further stated that getting such huge talents indicated that Bayern have invested smartly in the transfer market in recent years. He, therefore, praised sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic for – among others – unearthing “a gem” like Canadian left-back Alphonso Davies.
The 71-year-old, who is also a former Switzerland head coach is expecting Bayern to dominate on the European stage. However, he expects the recent success to offer extra motivation for some of their domestic rivals.
“The Bundesliga has the best team in the world, and that will also inspire the other clubs in Germany,” he said.
