Bayern led Fiorentina 2-0 midway through the second half last Tuesday, when the game entered its decisive phase with a string of chances at both ends. Jürgen Klinsmann leapt from his seat in the dug-out and gesticulated wildly at Tim Borowski, who was not getting back to defend as fast as the coach wanted. Borowski looked over to his boss, and shifted up a couple of gears – exactly as Klinsmann intended.
The scene was symptomatic of the learning process the coach has put Borowski through since his switch from Bremen to Munich in the summer. “Tim has learnt a great deal in the last three or four months. He’s learnt he has to work in two directions at Bayern, in defence as well as attack,” Klinsmann commented.
Best super sub in the league
Borowski’s attacking quality is not in doubt. Four Bundesliga goals make him the club’s top scorer, and also the best ‘super sub’ in the league. “He’s spent a decade in the Bundesliga, so we all know he’s superb going forward, has a fantastic shot, and also scores with his head,” said Klinsmann. “But he has to put in just as much effort in defence,” the coach continued, “if I lose possession, I have to turn round and get back to my position at 200 km/h.“
“He’s been working on it and put in a lot of extra training,” revealed Klinsmann, happy at his midfielder’s progress. “He’s showing more presence, his body language has improved, and he’s much, much better when we don’t have the ball.“ Borowski has started only two of Bayern’s thirteen games so far, but has channelled his understandable frustration into working even harder.
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