Niko Kovac: Serge Gnabry is “world class”

Serge Gnabry has enjoyed a fantastic start to the 2019/2020 campaign for both Bayern Munich and Die Mannschaft. The 24-year-old winger has already tallied 5 goals and 4 assists in a total of 9 appearances across competitions and put forth his best performance in a Bayern shirt with 4 goals in their 7-2 demolishing of Tottenham in the Champions League. One could say Gnabry is certainly on tap to continue to cook up more success as the season progresses (see what I did, there? Pun DEFINITELY intended!).

Photo by Steven Paston/PA Images via Getty Images

In the pre-match press conference previewing Bayern’s match against FC Augsburg, Niko Kovac was specifically asked about Gnabry and didn’t hold back in his praise for the winger (Bundesliga.com):

He’s developed really well, but he can still get even better. Let’s just wait and see what happens. If he can stay healthy and keep a clear head, he’ll continue to develop.

While Gnabry still has ample time to develop and continue to flourish at Bayern, Kovac still feels that Gnabry is already world class:

He’s world class. There’s nobody else with his abilities in the Bundesliga. He can shoot with his left or right foot, but he could exploit his pace better in the final third and go deeper every now and again, as he’s a real weapon there. He’s a great guy.

We’ll just leave this here for everyone to relive that memorable night in North London:

BONUS: A quick shout-out for PHONZIE!

Kovac also made a point of highlighting Alphonso Davies and the fact that he sees great potential in the Canadian international. His speed and defensive qualities, Kovac said, make him a useful asset that help his development at Bayern:

He’s got great qualities and his speed his a huge advantage. He plays a more defensive role with us than he does with his national team. He still needs to develop. We’ve got a lot of top-class players and need to find the right balance. I hope we can give him the minutes he needs.

Photo by TF-Images/TF-Images via Getty Images