Bayern Munich’s marathon runner: Joshua Kimmich

Move over, Alphonso Davies, there’s a new roadrunner in town!

Now that the calendar year is run, a look back at the Bundesliga in 2022. Nobody covered more green over the course of the year than Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich, with Opta stats clocking him in at 381.0 km, or almost 237 miles:

Kimmich’s impressive stat shows two things, though they were always plainly apparent as well. First, he’s no mere holding midfielder — the Bavarian six not only sets the tempo but does it from all over the field: playing the incisive pass from just outside the opponent’s box, chipping a long ball over the top from his own half, racing back to get into the defensive line.

Second, while he’s also a phenomenal talent, he’s pure demonstration that the best ability is availability. Kimmich is the consummate ironman for FC Bayern, and rarely if ever misses a game.

While he’s had a rotating cast of midfield partners around him — sometimes Leon Goretzka, sometimes Marcel Sabitzer, even Jamal Musiala, Corentin Tolisso, and Ryan Gravenberch — he’s the steadying presence. And now as we enter the second half of 2022/23, Kimmich’s stamina will be called upon again.