Bayern Munich Denies Rumors Of Being The German Barcalona

Bayern Munich captain Philipp Lahm has stated that the German club never wanted to become the next Barcelona amidst claims that they have been trying to replicate the style of play following the arrival of Guardiola. Bayern Munich been playing a possession style of football this year, which is a strong deviation from the incredibly successful method devised by Jupp Heynckes. The counter-attacking style of football reaped rich rewards for the club last season, as they won a famous treble including the Champions League.

This year, however, has been very tough towards the end of the season. Despite dominating the start with two major titles like the FIFA Club World Cup and the FIFA Super Cup, the team was knocked out of the Champions League in the semi-final stage in very difficult circumstances. They were knocked out by Real Madrid on a 5-0 score, which has been tough to take for the Bayern Munich supporters. The style of football was heavily criticised after Bayern had a lot of possession without being incisive.

Lahm has stated that Bayern Munich are trying to follow the philosophy of Guardiola, but they are clearly not looking to copy the style of Barcelona, which was hugely successful a few years ago. Lahm has been playing in the central midfield position this season.

"Barcelona were the benchmark between 2008 and 2012 and played some very exciting football. But it was never our goal to become a second Barcelona. We have shown under Pep Guardiola for two thirds of the season that we have our own successful style of play. We have been very dangerous in attack and we did have a lot of possession, like Barcelona. Having possession means you're in control. But Bayern never played Tiki-Taka, whatever the exact definition of that is,” said Lahm.