Hoeness: front office confident in Niko Kovac, praises game plan against Liverpool

Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness discussed various aspects of the club in excruciating details as he sat down for an interview with CHECK24 Doppelpass. He made sure that everyone knows he is satisfied with Niko Kovač as praised his game plan against Liverpool.

Not everyone had the same opinion when Kovač was signed. Some thought that his age could be a big problem while connecting with the players. A transition from the Heynckes era to Kovac era seemed demanding. But according to Hoeness, the coach has a really good relationship with the players and he knows where to stand: (Bild)

Initially he thought he could be [the players’] buddy. He’s now corrected that. [...] Success has come back.

Kovac shut many mouths with the draw against Liverpool last week. The management feels that the Croat has worked hard and done a good job and has established himself at the club. Hoeness said of Kovac’s preparations for Liverpool:

That was a chess-match of the highest order on grass. [...] He has established himself fantastically, which is not easy at a club like FC Bayern. [...] The test was the Pokal match against Berlin and also against Liverpool.

Hoeness admitted, though, the the confidence of the front office in the future of the club was shaken after Bayern’s stunning draw against Düsseldorf:

After the Düsseldorf game, we were all well-advised not to have our next conversation until Monday or Tuesday. [...] We didn’t know what lay more than two days ahead.

With a narrow win against Hertha Berlin on Saturday, Bayern Munich had taken a giant leap towards the title. With Dortmund's win against Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday, Bayern are still 3 points behind Borussia Dortmund in the league. The front office is impressed by the fact that Kovac overcame a their fall crisis to bring the team back into contention:

Nobody wants us to have a ten-point lead anyway. A transition like this doesn’t happen without some bumps. You have a new, young coach, a new, young sporting director. Under these conditions, to overcome such a crisis as we had in the fall so convincingly — with 18 wins and 1 draw — I can only say “hats off!”

Bayern Munich will face Borussia Mönchengladbach and Wolfsburg before the showdown against Liverpool on March 13th. All the aforementioned matches are equally significant as the Bavarians are aspire to be table toppers in the league.