Joshua Kimmich, Mats Hummels, and Thiago eulogize Jupp Heynckes following the Freiburg victory

Jupp Heynckes had plenty to smile about after Bayern Munich thrashed SC Freiburg 5-0 at the Allianz Arena on Saturday, his first match in charge since being announced as the club's manager until the end of the season. It was exactly the type of comprehensive victory that Bayern needed to shake off the lingering hangover from a poor run of results, having failed to win their previous three matches across all competitions. Since Heynckes was announced as the interim manager, there's been a noticeable lift in the mood at the club and an air of positivity has seemingly replaced what was a feeling of doom and gloom during Carlo Ancelotti's last couple of weeks before being dismissed.

After the win over Freiburg, Mats Hummels, Joshua Kimmich, and Thiago Alcantara offered refreshing insights (via Bundesliga.com) to what life's been like under Heynckes for the past week — in particular, the training sessions. Hummels made a point of highlighting Heynckes' directness and how it's helped everyone in the squad get on the same page:

“He’s very demanding. He’s been pleased with things so far but is constantly correcting and fine-tuning. He’s also made it very clear what he wants, and that means everyone playing as a team. We can maybe have a maximum of two players not helping out in defence, but the rest have to be there.”

Despite how demanding Heynckes can be with the players in the squad, Kimmich alluded to the sense of serenity he brings when he speaks to the team:

“When he speaks, everyone listens. He exerts a certain sense of calm.”

In their previous two Bundesliga matches against the likes of Hertha Berlin and Wolfsburg, Bayern blew 2-goal leads that ultimately led to dropped points. Hummels mentioned that Heynckes made a point to touch on that to ensure that the squad remained focused in the second half, having gone into the break 2-0 up against Freiburg:

“It was brought up during half-time and we made it absolutely clear that we couldn’t allow any recklessness at the back this time, and we managed that.”

Thiago, who had arguably his best performance of the season against Freiburg, applauded Bayern's complete team performance and Heynckes' venerable leadership:

“We played as a team, and it’s a long time since we played like that. It’s about our mentality. He’s [Jupp] a vastly experienced coach, and he shows you that he understands football.”

Next up for Jupp and Bayern is a visit from Scottish League champions Celtic in the Champions League on Wednesday.