Dangerous Times Lie Ahead For Bayern's Louis Van Gaal

Louis Van Gaal is enjoying his current status at Bayern. He is hailed as a coach who has finally given Bayern a new lease of life. He has freed them of the curse of too much dependence on just one player. Bayern are now a strong unit that can function without Robben or Ribery. When on form, the players can all function in both a 4-4-2 or a 4-3-3 (this formation requires the Frenchman and the Dutchman though). 

They are unbeaten in their last eight matches, of which only two have been draws. They have scored in each of those matches. Against Juventus, an inspired team showed up to bundle the Italians out of the Champions League. Hertha Berlin, VfL Bochum, and Hannover 96 were all bulldozed in the league by Die Roten. It all seems too good to be true.

Yet, what Van Gaal doesn't understand is that the team hit a similar vein of form in the league at this time last year, albeit having done far better in the Champions League. He will figure this out if he simply takes a look at the statistics in the second half of the season.

When a coach takes charge of Bayern, he doesn't take charge of a historical German club only; he takes charge of all the huge egos that make up the club. Martin Demichelis is one example of what a Bayern player can do. He was whining since his return from injury due to lack of playing time. Pretty soon, he found himself in the starting lineup and retained his place despite earning reviews similar to that of Christian Lell.

While reading up on Bayern, I read somewhere that Van Gaal gave him a starting berth just to stop him from whining. I found it hard not to believe it.

Franck Ribery will be back in the squad, fully fit in the second half of the season. With him back, Bayern will receive a massive boost in creativity as well as a massive headache in the dressing room.  All Ribery talks about is strengthening the Bayern squad, and there is very little chance that much will be done prior to the summer. With Ribery back, dressing room harmony could well be destroyed and Bayern could go back to slumping again.

Uli Hoeness wants to get rid of Ribery, and rightly so. Also, Bayern need a central defender, according to most supporters. Well, benching Demichelis won't be easy, and I doubt whether Van Gaal will do that.

Altogether, the winter break has come at a bad time for the Bayern supporters and players, but at a good time for Van Gaal. He has to sit down and think and ensure that dressing room harmony isn't destroyed. At the same time, he also has to find a way to make sure that his team is ready to take on Fiorentina. If Bayern beats Fiorentina, they will surely be drawn against one of the big boys.

Dangerous times lie ahead for Van Gaal and Bayern. If the story is supposed to different from the first half of last year, Van Gaal needs to start thinking...and fast.