By Oliver Trust
BERLIN, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- While Bayern Munich fans debate about the future of coach Niko Kovac ahead of the club's Champions League duel against Benfica, Stefan Effenberg is targeting the club's leaders.
The 50-year-old former Bayern midfielder called president Uli Hoeness and Chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge "part of the problem."
The 35 times capped German international accused the club legends of making "significant mistakes" when selecting the 2018/2019 squad. The three times German champion and 2001 Champions League winner recommended backing under-fire coach Kovac and also changing the squad as early as the next winter break if possible but by the end of the season at the latest.
Bayern would be well advised to change the team's age profile but most likely won't do it Effenberg assumed. Instead, the former professional and current TV and media pundit is expecting 46-year-old Kovac to be sacked shortly.
According to Effenberg, Kovac is not the one to be blamed for the critical situation. Kovac unsuccessfully tried to convince Bayern's leaders to rejuvenate the squad at the beginning of the 2018/2019 season.
The Bayern coach is left alone at present. Several media reports speak about 69-year-old former Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger possibly succeeding Kovac. The coach is not the main problem, says Effenberg. Bayern needs to change at least five to six players. "I don't see any leaders in the current squad," he emphasized.
That is in his opinion one of the most significant problems of the current squad. Bayern's leaders have lost the sovereignty they had over the decades, the German said. Leadership requires the ability to listen, to trust your staff, to communicate and talk straight about pros and cons, Effenberg stressed. He also said Bayern desperately needs new input from outside to manage its current crisis.
Next to former German international and Bayern keeper Oliver Kahn he mentioned the sports directors of Bayern's league rivals Borussia Moenchengladbach, Max Eberl, and Eintracht Frankfurt's, Fredi Bobic. "Both have proved their qualities and stand for new and inspiring ideas."
The example of the current Bayern sports director Hasan Salihamidzic is proving that a club needs a powerful management. Salihamidzic is said to be without any influence at the club. Effenberg said Hoeness and Rummenigge must share power as they would never entirely lose their influence even after retirement.
Both recently announced that they are thinking about resigning in the coming years but are expected to run for a new term "until we found a suitable solution" as Hoeness put it.
