Max Eberl has reflected on Thomas Tuchel’s tenure at FC Bayern in remarkably candid terms. The sporting director recalls a team that, when he took office in March 2024, clearly lacked enthusiasm and a sense of ease. At the same time, the 52-year-old makes it clear just how crucial Vincent Kompany’s role has been in the record champion’s positive development.

In an interview with FC Bayern’s member magazine 51, Eberl describes his first impressions of the Munich-based club. At the time, the club was going through a difficult phase on the field. Tuchel was still on the sidelines, but the decision to part ways with him at the end of the season had already been made.

What Eberl experienced during his first visits seems to have left a lasting impression on him. His comments can certainly be interpreted as clear criticism of the work done at the time by the current England national team coach.

Eberl: “What lethargy!”

“With a team like Bayern, the desire to achieve something great together is a decisive factor. And the coach has a huge influence on that,” explained the Bayern boss.

Eberl then described the atmosphere at the time in unusually stark terms. “When I visited the team’s training facility for the first few times after taking over in March 2024, I thought: What lethargy. Like a cloak of heaviness.”

A remarkable statement that catches the ear, especially because Tuchel was still in charge of the team at that time.

Under the former Chelsea coach, FC Bayern had endured a difficult season. At the end of the 2023–24 season, the record champions went without a title for the first time since 2012.

Off the field, too, the collaboration between Tuchel and the club’s leadership wasn’t always free of tension.

According to Eberl, Kompany has completely transformed Bayern

This makes Eberl’s praise for Vincent Kompany all the more striking. The Belgian took over the Munich team in the summer of 2024 and, in the sports director’s view, brought about a fundamental shift in morale. “Guys, we’re at FC Bayern Munich! We can win the championship every year—we’ve got to have fun,” Eberl recalled thinking at the time.

What he finds particularly remarkable is that Kompany brought about this change largely with the same group of players. “Vincent Kompany has completely revitalized the team. Many of the players are the same—but they seem like completely different players.”

In fact, since his arrival, the Belgian has put FC Bayern back on the path to success on the field. The team has since won two German championships, one DFB Cup title, and reached the Champions League semifinals.

Eberl’s retrospective is also interesting for another reason. Although the decision to part ways with Tuchel had already been made, the sporting director briefly attempted in the spring of 2024 to convince the then-coach to continue the collaboration after all.

Prior to that, several top candidates, including Xabi Alonso, Julian Nagelsmann, and Ralf Rangnick, had turned down offers from the Munich club.

Ultimately, there was no change of heart. Instead, Bayern signed Kompany from Burnley for a transfer fee of around 11 million euros.

Looking back from today’s perspective, Eberl apparently views this decision as an important turning point. His statements show that for the sporting director, it’s not just the on-field results that matter, but also the atmosphere within the team.

And it is precisely in this area that he sees a huge difference between the Tuchel era back then and the current Kompany era.

This article was translated into English by AI. You can read the original version here https://fcbinside.de/2026/10/31/deutliche-kritik-an-tuchel-eberl-enthuellt-erschreckende-zustaende-bei-bayern/.