They had outstanding abilities: the goalscoring instinct of Gerd Müller, the dynamism of Lothar Matthäus, the ability to play and shoot with either foot of Andreas Brehme, the self-confidence of Stefan Effenberg, the ingenuity of Thomas Müller, the brilliant saves of Manuel Neuer, the passion of Bastian Schweinsteiger or the dribbling of Rummenigge and Jamal Musiala.
“Go out and play football!” (“Geht’s raus und spielt’s Fussball!”), Beckenbauer’s motto with which he led Germany to the 1990 World Cup title, is smiled at by some.
My boyhood club is shaped by Franz Beckenbauer’s legacy, and for the last half-century has been run by former players.
This is the special way in which Bayern have been conquering title after title for what seems like an eternity.
But I can only really talk about it from the Beckenbauer era onwards, and since then Bayern have been something very special.
