4 Areas for Bayern Munich's Medhi Benatia to Improve in 2015/16 Season

While Bayern Munich and Pep Guardiola continue to hum and haw over new signings in the transfer window for the start of the coming Bundesliga campaign, a number of questions remain unanswered regarding current members of the squad. 

Question marks still hang over the centre of midfield where a large Bastian Schweinsteiger-sized hole has quickly emerged, yet it is in defence that much of the anxiety shared among fans currently rests. 

Yet rather than fumble over Rafinha's continued presence in the first team, today we will instead take a look at Medhi Benatia. Bayern's newest defender who has much to improve on if he is to finally become the player Guardiola and Co. thought they signed last summer. 

Attitude

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

Before we get to any of Benatia's physical attributes and how he plays when he's on the pitch in a Bayern shirt, there is undoubtedly a cloud brewing above the central defender that most fans would like to see disappear before anything else. 

Signing for a substantial fee from Roma only to sit on the bench is hardly an ideal situation for the central defender, yet the manner in which he has approached it has been far from ideal. 

Unfortunately the huffing and puffing of last season seems to have remained intact, with the defender doing little to dispel rumours of a bid from Juventus. In fact just a few weeks ago, while speaking to Italian newspaper Tuttosport (h/t Mark Doyle of Goal.com) Benatia went as far as to say he was flattered by such interest. 

Not exactly what Bayern fans want to be hearing from their relatively new players. 

Consistency

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

Aside from his attitude, the one thing that seems to stand out with Benatia at Bayern at this moment in time is the manner in which he simply cannot find any consistency in the first team. 

Much of that will of course be down to Guardiola's constant shuffling and changing of his starting 11—the defender had to wait until February until he could start three consecutive games—yet Benatia has a responsibility to force himself in to his manager's thoughts. 

With Holger Badstuber out injured and no real standout partner for Jerome Boateng the Moroccan international will undoubtedly get his chance at the start of this season. Yet it will all depend on whether he can make the most of such opportunities. 

His Presence in the Air

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

A number of abstract factors that go in to making a decent defender have been discussed in relation to the Bayern defender, yet one of the key things Benatia will have to work on this season is one of the most crucial aspects of defending: his heading. 

Standing at 6'2" the central defender is no slouch but when it comes to beating others in the air he has lacked ever so slightly behind his colleagues in defence. 

According to Squawka.com, the Moroccan defender won 61 percent of his headers in the Bundesliga last season, which falls behind Boateng (66 percent) and Badstuber (68 percent). 

Guardiola may want a more sophisticated defender in his side, but Benatia still has to defend high balls in the air.  

Giving Away Fewer Fouls

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

Although Benatia must be given some credit for adapting to a new league as quickly as he has, there's no doubt that the defender does at times struggle with the pace of the league. 

This was most notable in the sheer amount of fouls Benatia gave away last season. According to Whoscored.com, no player caused more fouls per match for Guardiola's squad other than new Manchester United signing Bastian Schweinsteiger. 

The stats website has Benatia giving 1.7 fouls per game, while Boateng sits on just one and Badstuber on 0.7. If Benatia wants to get in to Guardiola's first team he'll have to learn to pick up the pace and stop making those late tackles.