Bayern Munich’s Class of ’16 Could Rival Manchester United’s ’92 Vintage

Despite being crowned Bundesliga champions, the 1998-99 campaign was ultimately one of frustration for Bayern Munich.

Moments away from their fourth European Cup/UEFA Champions League title thanks to a first-half Mario Basler free-kick against Manchester United in Barcelona, the Bavarians were undone by a pair of injury-time goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson may have had a veteran English forward and a Norwegian import to thank for that fabled victory, but his side throughout the tournament were filled with academy graduates such as David Beckham, Paul Scholes and the Neville brothers, Gary and Phil.

The fabled “Class of ’92” was a golden generation for the English record champions, with 1999 a particular highlight. However, on a season that Bayern were digesting that disappointment, the seeds for their own future success were already being sewn.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti this week named his first Champions League squad as coach of Bayern, with the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Arturo Vidal and Jerome Boateng unsurprisingly named on his final European list.

Those with a keen eye, however, may have noticed that alongside those luminaries of the world game are a few names they may not have stumbled across until now.

With UEFA introducing expanded squad lists for this season’s competition, clubs are allowed to name a “B” list, which features a backup pool of talent who qualify, this season, if they were born after January 1, 1995.

Fabian Benko, Niklas Dorsch, Timothy Tillman and Marco Friedl—remember the names.

The progress of midfielders Benko and Dorsch through the youth academy at Sabener Strasse has been so meteoric that the pair—despite only being 18—have bypassed the club’s under-19 side and are already strutting their stuff with Bayern Munich II in the Regionalliga Bayern, the fourth tier of German football.

On watching them perform, it quickly becomes apparent why they are being played at a level two years ahead of the curve, with comparisons to former academy products and future Bayern greats Bastian Schweinsteiger and Toni Kroos seemingly justified—certainly in terms of their style, and perhaps one day in terms of their execution, too.

The pair, alongside Friedl, were even taken to Bayern’s midseason camp in Qatar last year to train with the first team. “It is a sign to the other young players that anything is possible,” then-sporting director …

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