5 hours ago
9
Harry Kane is a perfect fit for Bayern Munich. He is tailor-made for the Bundesliga, which has been the top league in Europe in terms of goals scored for years. German football is characterised by exchanges of punches, with the ball moving back and forth and plenty of chances on both sides; and Bayern are in the penalty area more often than any other team. Because Kane is confident and precise in front of goal and uses his height and heading ability to his advantage from corners and free-kicks, he scores like nowhere else.
The statistics are fantastic, with his scoring rate in the Bundesliga more than one-and-a-half times better than in the Premier League and for the national team. He has scored more goals (74) than he has played games (72) in the Bundesliga, significantly surpassing Gerd Müller’s record (0.85).
Kane could break records left, right and centre. With 12 goals in nine league games this season, he will surpass Robert Lewandowski’s 41 goals in 2020-21 if he continues at this rate. Kane has converted all 18 of his penalties in the Bundesliga. The way he prepares for them, his posture, his shooting technique – it’s extremely professional. I myself slipped on the last penalty of my career. I flew in, the ball went over.
Kane made the right decision in moving to Bayern. At 32, he is the dominant figure in the Bundesliga. He didn’t win any titles in England, but he has won one in Munich, with more to follow, including possibly an international one. To retire as a true great, you need that kind of glory. At Bayern, Kane can build himself a throne in the autumn of his career because the club give him a lot of influence and he enjoys enormous freedom.
In his third season in Munich, Kane is able to transfer his style of play to the club. He now interprets his role as he did at Tottenham: as a striker who gets the ball in midfield, distributes it and hits crossfield passes. I can’t remember a centre-forward whose passing was better. He also has a keen sense of when to move into the penalty area.
It is not unusual for a player to make the club his own at Bayern. That’s why it’s called a player’s club (Spielerverein). This special culture of leaving the formation to the players can sometimes backfire. Kane experienced this in 2024, when Bayern failed to win the league after 11 years in a row, partly because they had an opponent in the league who had a strong season, Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen.
The method has other disadvantages. Bayern need a coach who recognises potential. Otherwise, players can fail, even if they were signed for a lot of money. James Rodríguez, Philippe Coutinho, Sadio Mané and João Palhinha never became part of the team. It wasn’t because of their abilities, but rather because they didn’t have a clear position. Declan Rice might also have had a hard time in midfield, where his three competitors would have been Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka and Aleksandar Pavlovic – three Germany internationals who have internalised the culture of Bayern.
But now something has been found again. The squad is the right size, the average age is right, and the roles are given. At the back, three robust, fast centre-backs, Jonathan Tah, Dayot Upamecano and Kim Min-jae, can compete with the world’s best strikers. In the centre, Kimmich, Goretzka and Pavlovic hold their own and can also take turns. Two specialists of international calibre play on the wings, Michael Olise and Luis Díaz. And up front, King Kane brings it all together.
Because the team has a hierarchy, others also benefit. Serge Gnabry has found a new place at No 10. Another good example is the 17-year-old Lennart Karl. When he comes into the game, he is immediately there, able to contribute his talent for dribbling and shooting to the team’s success. This quickly makes him more important.
There is competition for some positions because it is not clear how they should be filled. Konrad Laimer has now established himself as a full-back. As a passionate, strong runner and tireless driving force, he complements his teammates well.
All this requires a manager with a feel for the club’s culture. Former footballers who have played at a high level are best suited for this. They bring an intrinsic understanding of the processes of a team and have natural authority. This is true of Vincent Kompany. He knows which players fit together and how. He is very much to Bayern’s liking.
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Now comes the phase in which Bayern will face top international teams. This will show how stable their structure is. Paris Saint-Germain – who they play on Tuesday – Manchester City and Arsenal have similar talent. However, Luis Enrique, Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta place much greater emphasis on the system. It will be exciting to see who wins: the team that has developed itself or the one that is more strictly shaped by the coach’s playing philosophy.
I expect Bayern to be difficult to beat if their leaders remain injury-free. Their monopoly in the Bundesliga is to their advantage, as they play in a flow there. It’s hard to imagine which German team they could lose to at the moment. After a winning streak, the team is brimming with confidence and spirit. You can see that in the moments when the players cheer each other. They are a unit.
However, it will be interesting to see what happens when Jamal Musiala returns from injury. The team is doing well without him and playing excellently. At the moment, everything is focused on Kane, and he is repaying that with goals. Alongside him, Musiala is one of the top earners, his contract having been extended until 2030. He is a great talent, a player with his own profile. Will it be possible to integrate him successfully, or will this weaken Bayern’s clarity? As we know, a team is only successful if it is more than the sum of its individual parts.
Philipp Lahm’s column was produced in partnership with Oliver Fritsch at Die Zeit, the German online magazine
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