Why Philipp Lahm Return Is Vital for Bayern Munich in Champions League Chase

Although Bayern Munich will be thinking of nothing else but Borussia Dortmund until at least Monday, Pep Guardiola and his side will know fine well their real test this season won't come for another two weeks, when they make the trip to Portugal to face Porto in the Champions League. 

Yes, the column inches and news bulletins will undoubtedly decry the result of Saturday's match as the cornerstone of any further action in this campaign, yet the Bayern coach will quickly retreat to his office, regardless of the result, and begin preparations for what are to be much more important fixtures. 

Despite all this, one particular characteristic of the match on show at the Westfalenstadion will play a large part in how the Bavarian juggernaut do in Europe this season.

Philipp Lahm has been given the all clear to return to Bayern's first team, and that may just be all too vital to any hopes of lifting another European cup. 

Sascha Schuermann/Associated Press

First things first: Bayern have desperately missed their full-back-turned-midfielder and captain. Terribly. While the World Cup winner has been sidelined with a malleolar fracture, Bayern have continued ticking along but have more often than not looked far from their best.

Lahm has returned to a team that are still top of the Bundesliga by a healthy margin and considered strong candidates for this season's Champions League finale in May, but this wasn't before enduring a clumsy 3-2 loss away to Manchester City and a truly humbling 4-1 defeat to Wolfsburg on the sidelines.

He may have made a brief cameo against Borussia Monchengladbach, but not before watching his side implode once again. 

The magic of Lahm, of course, comes from the juxtaposition of his slight, physical frame and the enduring influence he clearly exerts over any pitch he walks on to.

Bayern may be a team full of thoroughbred athletes at the top of their game, but it takes this man of 5'7" to organise them and turn them into a truly devastating machine.  

This is clear for all to see in any given match in which Guardiola has opted to stick Lahm in the centre of his midfield.

Alongside Bastian Schweinsteiger and Xabi Alonso—the likely trio for Saturday's game and any further fixture until Thiago Alcantara is fighting fit—Lahm perfectly balances out each of his team-mates' traits and allows the team to work like clockwork. 

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

Schweinsteiger is the typical box-to-box midfielder, who enjoys providing assists and spreading the play as much as a hard tackle or a leaped header, but that often leads to the need for cover or, indeed, support in attack.

In contrast, Alonso plays a much more static role for Bayern. The former Liverpool and Real Madrid star has a primary job of keeping possession and keeping the pendulum-like motion of Bayern's constant attacks at a quick pace. 

However great and accomplished these players are in their own specific roles, they undoubtedly need protection and cover from a third midfielder who knows where to stand, where to close down and, ultimately, where to cut off counter-attacks if or when the aforementioned central midfielders lose the ball. 

This is where Lahm steps in, and he has been so vital to Guardiola's new-look Bayern since the day the coach arrived at the club.

Using his notable off-the-ball instincts that made him one of the most formidable right-backs in the world, Lahm now patrols the Bayern midfield with the utmost authority and provides a stage for Alonso, Schweinsteiger and the attacking three to do their thing. 

Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

Bayern do, of course, have cover for Lahm in David Alaba and Sebastian Rode, who made an honest effort of emulating the former Germany captain.

Alaba, following in Lahm's footsteps as a converted midfielder, brings a much more physical and technical style to Bayern's midfield but also seems far more similar to Schweinsteiger in his attacking intent. Rode follows suit as a simple box-to-box midfielder.

Both young talents bring different aspects to the game that doesn't quite fill the Lahm-sized hole in the team. 

It's this subtle but vital change in personnel that could end up making the difference to Bayern's chances on Saturday and also, more importantly, in the Champions League, especially if the German champions can overcome Porto and take their game to the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid. 

Bayern and Guardiola just got their captain back, and it may make all the difference between now and May. 

@Sbienkowski