Louis van Gaal Aims To Make History At Bayern Munich

New Bayern Munich trainer Louis van Gaal wasted no time in setting out his visions for the Bavarian club when speaking at his first press conference on Wednesday.  

Speaking impressively in German, the 57-year-old Dutchman insisted that his philosophy is ideally matched to a club such as Bayern, outlining his hopes for the future. 

“Assured, arrogant, dominant, honest, hard-working, innovative, but warm and family-oriented – that about sums up my personality,” Van Gaal told the gathered reporters.  

“And that’s why I think I’ll fit in here. The culture at Bayern Munich and the Bavarian attitude to life are made to measure for me.

“I’m proud and delighted to be working at such a big club. I studied the language five days a week from 09:00 to 18:00,” he added.  

“I’m a communicator. The players will soon find that out for themselves, because I want to impose my philosophy as quickly as possible. 

“We should take Barcelona as our model. Like us, they have good players, but they work as a team – that’s the reason they succeed. I’m convinced we can do it too. We have to become a real team.” 

Despite his ideals, Van Gaal did warn that it could take time for his principles to take effect at the Allianz Arena - something Juergen Klinsmann, his predecessor, wasn’t given. 

“Two years perhaps,” he mused. “Instilling my philosophy needs lots of hours spent training. We don’t have that. I’ll be delighted if we make it through the first two months OK, with not many injuries and plenty of wins.

“I start with holistic principles. I don’t see a player as a man who shoots a ball from point A to point B, but as a human who reacts to his environment, so the environment influences the shot.   

“My goals are the same as Bayern Munich’s goals. Our goal is to battle for trophies, in the league but also in the cup. 

“As for the Champions League, I want us to take us into the last eight – not just this season, but year after year – and maybe, at the end of the Van Gaal period, win the Champions League. I always aim to make history, and I hope I can make history in a positive way at Bayern.”

Mathew Burt, Goal.com