Heynckes pleased as Mueller leads Bayern to another trouncing
Jupp Heynckes said he enjoyed seeing Thomas Mueller return to form as Bayern Munich got their Champions League campaign back on track with a 3-0 home win against Celtic.
Bayern captain Mueller put the hosts ahead after 17 minutes before goals by Joshua Kimmich and Mats Hummels sealed the victory at the Allianz Arena yesterday morning (Singapore time).
Heynckes, who replaced the sacked Carlo Ancelotti, restored Mueller to his preferred attacking midfield role, allowing him to roam just behind Robert Lewandowski, with Thiago Alcantara dropping deeper.
"Thomas put in a good performance, he ran a lot, was everywhere and we saw the old Thomas Mueller," said Heynckes. "He's an established player, the captain and it's good to see him playing well again."
OUT OF POSITION
Mueller struggled for form under Ancelotti and was often played out of position.
But while the Germany star was delighted to see Bayern pick up the three points in Europe and build on Saturday's 5-0 thumping of Freiburg in the Bundesliga, he said there is room for improvement in their finishing.
"The attitude was better, we were motivated after the win at Freiburg and wanted to build on the momentum," said Mueller.
"We created a lot of chances in the second half which we should have used."
Heynckes was also unhappy with Bayern's finishing - pointing to the 29 shots on goal which yielded only the three goals.
"We created a lot of chances that we didn't take advantage of and, at the other end, let them have a few themselves," said the 72-year-old, who also became the oldest coach in the Champions League after taking charge in yesterday's game.
"We were a bit negligent there and we cannot let that happen. You need to be completely alert from the first to last minute."
The trio of James Rodriguez, Arturo Vidal and Corentin Tolisso, Bayern's record signing, all started on the bench, but Heynckes said they will get their chances. - AFP
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