Bayern Munich's Biggest Regret of the 2014/15 Bundesliga Season

Bayern Munich's 2014-15 season is over, and now is the time to reflect on what was and what could have been.

The German giants secured the Bundesliga title for a third consecutive season, winning by a commanding 10 points. But the one that got away was the trophy with the big ears, the Champions League. And for a number of reasons, not reaching the final will surely be their biggest regret of the 2014-15 campaign.

Pep Guardiola and company entered the 2014-15 campaign with a point to prove on the continental stage, having done nearly everything right domestically the previous season, only to suffer a complete collapse as they entered the home stretch. It didn't cost them the Bundesliga title, but it did end their hopes of becoming the first team to successfully defend the Champions League in its current guise, as they were hammered 5-0 on aggregate by Real Madrid in the semifinal.

Kerstin Joensson/Associated Press

The Real debacle was a big setback for morale, and Bayern were determined to dismiss it as a one-off. History was on their side; they had reached three finals in the previous four seasons, with a big disappointment coming in 2011 when they lost in the round of 16 to the same Inter side that would later be beaten 7-3 on aggregate by Schalke.

After that setback, Bayern rebounded with a brilliant continental campaign that took them to the 2012 final. They would go on to lose on penalties to Chelsea in a match played on home turf at the Allianz Arena.

This season, Bayern aimed to rebound from a huge shock just as they had in 2011-12 and reach the final, also on German soil at the Olympiastadion in Berlin. But history repeated itself in a negative way, as for the second consecutive season, the Munich giants were outclassed in the semifinals by Spanish opposition. Barcelona won the first leg 3-0 and were 2-1 up early in the second leg, leaving the outcome decided long before the final whistle.

Being outclassed in the semifinal for a second consecutive season only served to strengthen the opinion that a regression has occurred in the team. One such disappointment may be an anomaly, but two is a trend. If Guardiola was hired in part to help garner international respect for Bayern, as this article in Der Spiegel profiling the events leading up to his signing suggests, the Champions League results haven't exactly helped.

One big problem for Bayern is that, to an extent, they've been victims of their own success. Shattering Bundesliga records again and again over the last three years, the league title has become widely regarded as a given. That Bayern won the Bundesliga this year was not seen by many as an achievement so much as the club reaching the bare minimum expected target.

Kerstin Joensson/Associated Press

Those critics have a point in that Bayern's financial and personnel resources absolutely dwarf the so-called competition. However, there are many clubs that fail to live up to expectations. There are some very good teams in the Bundesliga, and that Bayern managed to beat them to the title is certainly an accomplishment.

Still, many will only be convinced by Champions League performances—those few games at the very highest level—so they will continue to have their doubts. The plan to expand their market and reel in neutrals will continue to depend on breaking back into the very top tier.

It would have been a great honor for Bayern to represent Germany and the Bundesliga in a Champions League final in Berlin. It would have been a perfect way to silence the critics who slammed the German giants for taking advantage of weak opposition as they forged a domestic dominance that did not reflect their true standing in Europe. But it wasn't to be.

Bayern will have to handle the disappointment and regret of missing out this spring and wait another year for another crack at the Champions League.

@Mr_Bundesliga