Ranking Bayern Munich's Top 5 Players for February 2016

Bayern Munich negotiated a difficult February with resounding success as they advanced to the DFB-Pokal semi-final and put themselves in prime position to progress to the Champions League quarter-finals, while not conceding an inch in the Bundesliga title race.

Going undefeated with four wins in six games over the course of the month, Bayern achieved their success with a makeshift defense. And with Franck Ribery, Mario Gotze and Medhi Benatia now all fit once more, they look to be a stronger side than they were a month ago.

With February having come to an end, B/R runs the rule over Bayern's squad, picking out the top performers of the month in all competitions. Click "click slideshow" to start the countdown with No. 5.

5) David Alaba

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David Alaba starts off the countdown at No. 5. Defensive players in this day and age rarely are recognized for their exploits, but the Austria international had a great month despite typically playing out of position in central defense.

Bayern conceded just four goals in six games in all competitions during February, and Alaba was in a large way responsible for that record. Not bad for a player who, at 1.80 meters and with a rather narrow frame, isn't exactly the strongest in the air.

4) Philipp Lahm

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Ranking slightly ahead of Alaba, and for similar reasons, is captain Philipp Lahm. The veteran had a strong month despite his advanced age, showing that even at 32 years old, he still has abundant class.

Lahm had no standout games in which he was the man of the match, but he was remarkably consistent despite playing in a variety of roles in the general vicinity of defense and midfield.

His tactical awareness was huge for Bayern as they minimized the number of crosses that could be used to expose their undersized back line.

The fact that Bayern conceded so few goals in February is a testament to how well Lahm and his teammates in midfield did to win back possession and keep the ball out of their defending third.

3) Manuel Neuer

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Manuel Neuer often has little to do between the posts, and when he does, it rarely looks very difficult. But he had a more pivotal month for Bayern than it might have appeared, and accordingly, he ranks third on our list of top performers.

The Germany shot-stopper had some big performances against Wolfsburg, Bayer Leverkusen, Augsburg, and even Juventus despite the ball twice finding its way into his net.

Without Neuer making key saves again and again when the result was still in the balance, Bayern would have had a much more difficult month.

And although many of his saves looked quite easy, Neuer's ability to remain focused and position himself so flawlessly should be praised.

2) Thomas Muller

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Pep Guardiola learned an important lesson in early February: Bench Thomas Muller, and your attack will suffer greatly.

The trainer let his start attacker have a rest in the big game against Bayer Leverkusen, and the league leaders were held scoreless over 90 minutes. Muller came on, but a half-hour wasn't enough for him to decide the result.

The Leverkusen match aside, Muller had a brilliant February. The Germany international scored four goals (including the key opener against Juventus) and assisted three more.

Aside from the Leverkusen match, the only game in which he didn't have a hand in any goals was the last of the month, against Wolfsburg. For that, and his missed penalty against Bochum, he slips to second on this list.

1) Robert Lewandowski

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The only Bayern player more consistent than Muller in February was Robert Lewandowski. The Poland international scored six goals and gave two assists over the course of the month, meaning that he played a direct role in eight of his side's 13 goals.

The only game in which he did not score or assist a goal was against Leverkusen, in which none of his teammates could do the same, either.

Lewandowski's February form was a continuation of his brilliance from January, in which he scored Bayern's first four goals of the calendar year.

As Douglas Costa and Arjen Robben's form have dropped, the 27-year-old has carried Bayern's attack.

For his leadership and continued high level of performance while those around him had their ups and downs, Lewandowski ranks the best Bayern player of February.