Why Bayern Munich must build their new squad around Aleksandar Pavlović

Only 19, Aleksandar Pavlović has become Bayern Munich's best defensive midfielder this season. Indeed, his emergence could save the club in the region of €70m+ going forward.

Sometimes, you don’t know what you are missing until it is gone. That’s the case for Aleksandar Pavlović at Bayern Munich. Ahead of the international break, Bayern seemed to turn things around, beating Lazio 3-0 to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg. Then, they went on to beat Mainz 8-1 and Darmstadt 5-2.

In all those games, Pavlović formed a double-6 with Leon Goretzka and for the first time this season, there was at least some sense that Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel had stabilized his midfield. But even before that run, the 19-year-old midfielder had been Bayern’s find of the season, even putting the club's need to sign a no.6 this winter on a backburner.

Ahead of the winter transfer window, this author argued in an article for Forbes that Pavlović might save Bayern in the region of €70m on the transfer window. Establishing players like Pavlović in the first team, in fact, has been the goal ever since Bayern opened the €70m campus on the outskirts of Munich.

The campus's shortcomings in producing talents for the first team have been a long-discussed issue within the club. For that reason, Bayern are now eyeing a cooperation agreement with Unterhaching.