Can Pep succeed Heynckes seat in Bayern?

When the news broke that Pep Guardiola was going to replace Jupp Heynckes as the head coach at Bayern Munich at season's end, much was discussed about how Guardiola would fit well into an already-solid Bayern set up.

However, months later, the body of work produced by Heynckes is such that it is almost unassailable and perhaps has suddenly made Guardiola's first year in Germany a more difficult one.

With the Bundesliga already secured, wins in the Champions League final and German Cup final would give Heynckes a treble, the symbol of a perfect season in European football.

A question has now arisen and it bears asking: Will Guardiola be able to fill Heynckes' shoes?

On the surface, the easy answer is yes. Guardiola already possesses a treble, having secured that in his first season at Barcelona. But rare is the time when a manager departs a team after winning the treble. José Mourinho did it following Inter's treble during the 2009-2010 season. His replacement, a Champions League- winning manager in Rafael Benítez, didn't even last until the end of the following campaign, and now Inter are miles away from those glory days.

But the level of talent that is in Munich suggests Guardiola will not suffer a Benitez-like fate. Nevertheless, the expectations of the 'Die Roten' faithful will be higher than ever. With every spectacular and lopsided win, the stature of Heynckes grows.

One almost gets the sense that Heynckes - who was reportedly rankled that Guardiola's appointment was announced much earlier than anticipated - wants to leave Guardiola with no room for any dip in performance.

If that is indeed Heynckes' objective, he's done a superb job of carrying it out and could make Guardiola’s first season in Germany much more uncomfortable than expected.


/Marca.Com/