Bayern Munich's double pivot plan has worked

The Hinrunde was not always smooth sailing for Bayern Munich boss Niko Kovac. Die Roten suffered an awful stretch in October that left much doubt as to whether the former Eintracht Frankfurt coach was ready for the limelight that accompanies the manager position in Bavaria.

That awful run of play, however, provided Kovac with the vision to see how he could best utilize the talent on his roster. When Kovac opted to change to a 4-2-3-1, he fortified a sometimes shaky defense with a double pivot that seemingly changed the course of the season for the Bavarians.

As Bayern battled injuries across the roster, Kovac's enlightened approach gave his squad a fortified look that bolstered the defense, while still allowing the team to apply pressure offensively.

Using a mix of mostly Leon Goretzka, Thiago Alcantara, and Joshua Kimmich in the two spots, Bayern has looked like a different team. Gone are the looks of uncertainly and confusion, as Die Roten looks far more assertive, comfortable, and confident on both ends of the pitch.

While, Javi Martinez and Renato Sanches have also made bit appearances as part of the double pivot, the large majority of the work has been done by Goretzka, Thiago and Kimmich.

In particular, the growth of Goretzka within this role has been outstanding and vital to the team's success. At the beginning of the season the former Schalke man looked uncomfortable at times in trying to find his role on the squad, but with a more stringent commitment to his defensive responsibilities, Goretzka has built a trust with Kovac and whoever lines up next to him as part of the double pivot.

For Kimmich, the temporary shift to a central midfield role was driven by the team's injury situation. While Kimmich excelled in his role in the double pivot, the 23-year old looks like he is returning to his normal spot at right back where he can continue to torment the opposition and provide Bayern with its strongest possible Starting XI.

Thiago has been his normal steady self, controlling the pace of the game and contributing both offensively and defensively with his deeper role.

The key to the success of the move is that whatever pairing has been used, the players have developed a relationship that has proven to be responsible. If one player sprints forward to join a rush, his partner will hang back to provide stability. There were rarely instances where Bayern left itself exposed to a counter attack because it seemingly always found itself with the proper coverage in front of the back four.

Bayern's starting outside backs David Alaba and Kimmich, of course, have a habit of joining the play offensively and not being able to recover in time to support the center backs from an oncoming rush. This has mostly been alleviated by the double pivot, though, is always a potential issue for the offensively aggressive duo.

Regardless, with this tactical deployment, it is not hard to conceive that Bayern has the talent and scheme to catch Borussia Dortmund in the Ruckrunde.

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