Leon Goretzka is shining with Bayern Munich
Much has been made of Bayern Munich's midfield madness over the past year. With an abundance of talent essentially competing for three spots, both Jupp Heynckes and Niko Kovac have had to be creative in finding a way to utilize all of the talent at their disposal.
While Heynckes was able to walk away from a volatile roster surplus, Kovac had the unenviable task of trying to manage a mix of established veterans, burgeoning young talent, and global stars. Among the players rising from the glut of talent is former Schalke man and Germany international Leon Goretzka.
After a somewhat inauspicious start to his season, Goretzka has gained the confidence of Kovac and has also blossomed with an expanded role on the squad.
Goretzka's start with Bayern was bit up-and-down as Kovac's squad rotation prevented the team from achieving any sense of consistency or even comfort. Goretzka was among the many players, who were caught up in a numbers game, which led to Bayern's disastrous September and October stretch.
Once James Rodriguez went down with a knee injury and Kovac settled into a double pivot alignment, Goretzka began to show his true talent.
Working with players like Joshua Kimmich and Thiago Alcantara, Goretzka was able to help bolster the squad in front of the back line and once Kovac's preferred tandems gained comfort in working with each other, Goretzka progressed to being more aggressive offensively, which has paid big dividends for the Bavarians.
As noted above, Goretzka's evolution within the Bayern squad did not end with a defined role within the double pivot, however. Kovac has trusted Goretzka to play both the "8" and "10", where the 23-year-old has also excelled.
In his last two games, Goretzka has scored three goals and displayed both athleticism and relentlessness when attacking. Goretzka first prominently put those traits out to the masses when playing for the German entry in the 2017 Confederations Cup.
Goretzka used the Confederations Cup tourney to prove that he could perform and produce on a big stage. Today, Goretzka has made himself one of the most indispensable pieces on the Bayern roster.
Goretzka's emergence comes at a fascinating time for Bayern in terms of evaluating its midfield options.
With Thiago widely acknowledged to be a foundational piece for the team and 24-year-old Corentin Tolisso an up-and-coming star, Bayern could have three excellent midfield options for the foreseeable future. As Thomas Muller floats between his normal attacking midfield position and a spot on the wing, Kovac has excellent versatility to work with that allows the coach the flexibility to use his troops in many different formations and combinations, while also having the luxury to rotate efficiently and effectively without causing too much disruption.
But even with that aforementioned talent, Bayern has even greater depth, which is both a blessing and a curse. How does Kovac keep a potentially volatile situation with a benched James Rodriguez under control? The Colombian star has had numerous instances of verbal and/or visual discontent this season.
Rodriguez is not a player who is happy -- or has time for -- sitting on the bench at this stage of his career. With just a few months left on his loan from Real Madrid, Rodriguez and Bayern alike will have to figure out if the 27-year-old has a future in Bavaria.
But is not just Rodriguez that Kovac has to account for. 21-year-old Renato Sanches is entering a phase of his career where he will need to be consistently on the field if he wants to continue his development. In addition, 30-year-old defensive midfielder Javi Martinez will have to decide whether he is happy being a depth option in Munich or if he wants to make one last run with a power club.
In addition, VfB Stuttgart's Benjamin Pavard will be joining Bayern in the summer, but the versatile center back played for France's World Cup winning side as a right back. Could Bayern deploy him as a right back as well, pushing Joshua Kimmich to a central midfield role? These are all certainly possibilities that Die Roten will ponder over the summer.
With playing time at a premium and so many solid options available, each player on the current roster and the club itself, will have to assess what is best for the future this summer.
Regardless of any roster logjam, Goretzka has proven that he is ready for the limelight. As Bayern engages in an exhilarating hunt of Borussia Dortmund in hopes of securing a seventh consecutive league title, the squad will also hook-up with Liverpool for a true heavyweight showdown in the Champions League round of 16.
With Goretzka's penchant for raising his level of play to meet the magnitude of a game, this could be the period where he becomes much more than a "talented young player in the Bundesliga." This is the opportunity for the world to get to know the player affectionately known as "Leon the Professional" in some circles.
While there are certainly plenty of big things to come for Goretzka, this is a very key period for the player to really establish himself globally. A confident and assertive Goretzka is a legitimate weapon against any opponent. Goretzka's vision and ability to attack space, along with his anticipation and exceptionally quick breakout ability to join a counter-attack, will continue to enhance Bayern's offense.
Goretzka is a true Next Generation midfield option for Bayern and if he continues his current run of quality play, global soccer fans will quickly become just as familiar with him as those supporters of the Bundesliga.
