Kingsley Coman says Thiago was just as important as Lewandowski at Bayern

Thiago Alcantara transferring to Liverpool in the Premier League was something most Bayern Munich fans did not want. But as the 2019/20 season progressed and we got closer to the summer transfer window, it became more and more of an inevitability. Losing a player of his quality is obviously going to leave a huge void to fill, but he was ready for the next step in his career.

In a recent interview (via SportBild), Kingsley Coman lamented not having Thiago in the squad anymore and said the midfielder was just as important a player as Robert Lewandowski. “He didn’t score many goals for Bayern, but what he did was as important for the team as Robert Lewandowski’s 50 goals,” Coman said of his former teammate. “For five years I trained with him every day. So I know his qualities. Liverpool could be happy to have such a great footballer in their ranks,” he continued.

Photo by Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images

At Liverpool, Thiago has only made two appearances, both of which came in the Premier League: a 2-0 win over Chelsea as a second half substitute and the 2-2 Merseyside derby draw against Everton last weekend. Of course, Thiago had to sit out for two weeks due to a positive coronavirus test just after the win over Chelsea, and now he is facing a spell on the sidelines with a knee problem as a result of a rash challenge from Everton’s Richarlison in the derby for which he saw a straight red card.

As far as the void left by Thiago at Bayern, his absense hasn’t been too painfully noticed as Leon Goretzka and Joshua Kimmich have acquitted themselves well in the double pivot format. Corentin Tolisso has also turned in some positive performances, one of which came in Bayern’s 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid in their opening group stage match of the Champions League earlier this week. There are also high expectations for Marc Roca, who signed with Bayern from Espanyol during the transfer window. He made his debut in the 3-0 DFB-Pokal win over FC Düren and shone. It’ll still certainly take him some time to hit his full stride, but his future looks bright.