Bayern Munich coach Juergen Klinsmann is under increased pressure after their 4-0 Champions League defeat to Barcelona — described by club legend Franz Beckenbauer as a "catastrophe".
The defeat leaves Bayern’s hopes of advancing to the semifinals of the competition in tatters and comes hard on the heels of a 5-1 thrashing by VfL Wolsburg in the Bundesliga. Reigning champions Bayern slipped to fourth, four points adrift of new leaders Wolfsburg and Saturday’s match against Eintracht Frankfurt is now considered a must-win game for the Munich giants. Beckenbauer, who is now the club president, was scathing in his criticism of the current Bayern team under Klinsmann’s charge. “This is a catastrophe,” Beckenbauer told Premiere Television after the 4-0 defeat against Barcelona. “This is schoolboy stuff. The first half was the worst I have ever seen Bayern play,” he was quoted on Reuters.com. Klinsmann, who enhanced his reputation by taking Germany to the semifinals of the 2006 World Cup on home soil, has found club management more of a struggle after assuming the Bayern hot seat last summer. Strong performances in the Champions League have helped gloss over indifferent Bundesliga displays, but Wednesday’s humiliating defeat to the Spanish league leaders underlined defensive frailties again. Club chief Karl-Heinz Rummenigge was also publicly critical of the performance but said they would not be making a rushed decision. “One should not take any decisions today,” Rummenigge told Reuters.com. “It was a disgrace but it is best if you sleep and then deal with these issues rationally.” Former German international striker Klinsmann took charge of the Munich giants in succession to Otmar Hitzfeld and promised an improvement in the club’s level of performance.
