Bayern 2016-17 season review: Results, roster changes, and summer transfer targets

Bayern Munich are easily the best team in the history of German football, but with such greatness comes a certain degree of expectation. Those expectations may have gotten the better of Bayern this season, because despite another dominant league display, another season without other silverware has left a taste of disappointment in the mouths of many fans.

But this is still Bayern Munich, and even though they’re not winning every title available to them, they’re still an incredible side. They’re a side in a bit of a transition, though, with some of their best players either retiring or starting to age, including the venerable Philipp Lahm, it’s fair to wonder what’s next for Bayern.

Bayern easily won their fifth straight and 27th overall Bundesliga title, finishing a full 15 points clear of second-place RB Leipzig. It’s a remarkable feat to so utterly dominate a high-level domestic league like that, with only Juventus in Italy and Celtic in Scotland bettering that mark with six straight league titles apiece.

Bayern also got a lot out of some of their important young talents, with Thiago Alcantara, Douglas Costa, David Alaba, and Josh Kimmich all impressing when they were healthy — though health was admittedly a problem at times this season for much of the Bayern squad, including several of those players. They also got one last impressive ride from Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery, with the famed “Robbery” duo scoring 18 combined goals and 20 combined assists in Bundesliga action this year, giving Bayern fans one last chance to enjoy the legendary pair at their best.

There were two major blemishes on Bayern’s season, losing the Champions League quarterfinal to Real Madrid, and losing the DFB-Pokal semifinal to Borussia Dortmund. The Champions League loss stung badly, coming as a result of a bad string of injury luck and frankly getting blown off the pitch by a hot Real Madrid side. There were some questionable refereeing decisions as well, but that had little to do with Bayern’s collapse late in the tie and overall lackluster performance.

The loss to Borussia Dortmund was something of a baffling one. They’d had Dortmund’s number all season long, but after going up 2-1 on their arch rivals by halftime, Bayern backed off the throttle to a strange and unusual degree. They lost their focus in a bad way, and that allowed Dortmund to score twice in five minutes to take the lead and claim the win. It was almost like their confidence turned to arrogance, and that’s never a good thing in a match like that. It’s something Bayern absolutely have to focus on avoiding next season if they’re going to meet their goals.

Of course, Bayern are still Bayern. They have the resources to replace their departing and aging veterans. They can easily find ways to upgrade at key positions if they feel like they need to. They’re going to be a dominant force again, if for no other reason than they’re Bayern freaking Munich. This team is too good not to challenge for three titles again next season, especially since it’s only going to get better than it is today.

Bayern already have three guaranteed losses from their squad, with Philipp Lahm, Xabi Alonso, and Tom Starke all retiring. The likes of Robben and Ribery could leave as well, or at least have to take significantly lesser roles as their bodies age and their legs slow. That leaves some pretty big holes to fill, though Bayern can at least start filling some of those from within.

Still, they have some needs to address. Joshua Kimmich is the heir apparent to Lahm, but the Bavarians will still be looking at right backs. They’re going to need better defensive depth overall, especially after dealing with so many injuries this season that cost them at crucial times, like what happened against Real Madrid. They could also use another real center forward to spell Robert Lewandowski, because as good as Thomas Müller is, he struggled most of the time he was asked to replace the Polish striker this season.

It’s tough to say exactly what kind of players they’ll look for in that pool of needs. Suffice it to say, though, that Bayern and manager Carlo Ancelotti won’t be afraid to being in the very best players they possibly can, and won’t be afraid to sell players who underperformed a year ago, like Javi Martinez or Rafinha.