Best academy products: 10 greatest graduates of all time from Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich are currently one of the most dominant teams in Europe. The Bavarians have always been a very good side, but they have become a formidable side since the turn of the century and have won numerous domestic and continental titles during this period. Their recent success was shaped by the advent of many notable academy graduates which is similar to the case of Barcelona.If you look at Spain’s side which dominated football in recent years, you can see that Barcelona’s academy graduates played a crucial role and a similar pattern can be seen with Bayern Munich and Germany. In fact four German players, namely Thomas Muller, Mats Hummels, Toni Kroos and Philipp Lahm, were in the shortlist for the Golden Ball award for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and all four of them are Bayern’Âs academy graduates.This isn’t the first time that Bayern’Âs youth products have played a key role in Germany’s success. Players like Franz Beckenbauer, Sepp Maier and Hans-Georg Schwarzenbeck from Bayern’s academy were all key players in Germany’Âs 1974 World Cup winning squad.Many of Germany’Âs greatest players have come through Bayern’s academy and they keep producing top talents. So here is a look at the ten best academy players from Bayern Munich.
#10 David Alaba
Aged just 23, David Alaba might seem like a baffling inclusion in the list. However, based on the evidence of his highly impressive career with both club and country in the last five years, Alaba has a case.
Alaba’s entry into the Bayern team was simply amazing. Aged just 17, he came on as a substitute against Greuther Furth and within one minute and with just his second touch of the game, he set up Ribery for the goal that gave Bayern the lead. His partnership with Ribery down the left flank of Bayern was one that would blossom into a fruitful one in the seasons that followed.
The most impressive thing about Alaba is that he started his career as a central midfielder, but quickly adapted to the left back position and became the undisputed first choice for a club of Bayern's stature when he was just a teenager.
However, he plays in central midfield with equal effect when he plays for Austria and was one of the standout performers in the Euro 2016 qualifying phase. His manager Pep Guardiola recently called Alaba God because the Austrian has played in almost all 10 outfield positions for his Bayern side.
His versatility is just one of his strong suits. The Austrian is one of the most attack-minded full-backs in the game, but he hasn't let his attacking instincts affect his defensive duties. He has immense pace, good ball control and positional sense.
Alaba makes brilliant and well-timed overlapping runs when the winger down the left side draws away a defender and the result is equally good when the roles are reversed. In addition to this, his ability to strike the ball cleanly has come in handy as he has scored some brilliant goals with that wand of a left foot of his.
At such a young age he has already been named in UEFA’s team of the year for 2013 and 2014 and has been named as Austrian footballer of the year for the last four years in succession.
Despite his growing stature and fame, Alaba has remained humble and that's probably why he is where he is in such a short period.