Bayern and the MLS All-Stars

Bayern Munich came to Portland to play the MLS All-stars.  We couldn't quite bring ourselves to pay for the tickets to the game, after all we are not big MLS fans but we do love Pep Guardiola, the Bayern coach.  He was the coach at FC Barcelona.  I have long admired him for the classy way he conducts himself on and off the field!  Instead of going to the game, Scott and I went down to watch Bayern's open practice.

Here he is -Josep 'Pep' Guardiola.  He started playing in the Barca youth system when he was just 13, playing for 17 years, first with Barca B and then with the first team.  During his years wearing a first team Barca jersey he played in 479 games over 12 seasons and won 16 trophies.  His first year as coach of Barca he did the seemingly impossible and won the Spanish League Title, the Spanish Super Copa, and the Champion's League. First Spanish team to do so!  Pep is the youngest coach to win the Champion's League.  After 4 seasons he left the club, spent a year in New York on a sabbatical from football and then took over as coach of Bayern Munich.  One of the best records he holds as FC Barcelona coach is that he was the first coach to beat fierce rival Real Madrid 4 times in a row!  We really enjoyed watching him coach his team at this practice!

Scott especially enjoyed watching the drills.  I am sure the high school boys he coaches in Boise will be doing similar things!  Or trying to do them!!!

Here they are holding hands and moving forward while keeping a ball moving, sometimes by kicking and sometimes by heading it, competing with the other groups to reach the end line.  Just an amazing levels of skill and these are not all the first team stars! Many of the stars for Bayern were on the German World Cup Championship team and they were not at this practice.

Probably the most famous player we saw was Polish star, 25 year old Robert Lewandowski.  

I think he must spend a lot of time in the weight room!

The game ended with the MLS All-Stars winning 2-1, which was not supposed to happen! Plus in this game that was to be a 'friendly', there were some decidedly unfriendly hard tackles. Pep was incensed at the ref and at the MLS Coach and definitely let his displeasure be known. First to the referees.

Then to the MLS coaches by shaking his finger at them as if to warn them that he did NOT want to talk after the game. 

And finally walked off without shaking the opposing coach's hand.

We have debated this at length here at our house.  True the tackles were hard and not in the spirit of a 'friendly' game.  Bayern will start their season in a few weeks so getting an important player injured in this game would have been a senseless tragedy.   Even taking that into account, we all agree that he should have shaken hands with the coach.  Not a classy move from a man who has always shown such class!