After seven years it's: Ádios, Thiago! The midfielder leaves FC Bayern to join Liverpool FC. His time with the German record champions was crowned with a historic Treble last season. On him leaving the club, fcbayern.com would like to thank our former number 6 six times:
#1 Thank you for your trophy hunger
The highlight of his time in Bavaria: Thiago with the famous long-eared trophy in August 2020.
Thiago collected no fewer than 17 titles in his seven years with FC Bayern! A clean sweep of Bundesliga titles, four DFB Cup wins, a Champions League, a FIFA Club World Cup and, so on and so forth... Thiago is a winner - and that can be highlighted by looking at every single match he played: The Spaniard won more than 78 percent of his Bundesliga games: the only person also to have played over 100 Bundesliga games and top that is his ex-team-mate Javi Martínez (82 percent).
#2 Thank you for your sublime technical ability
No better way to score your first Bundesliga goal: It's the third minute of injury time at the end of Matchday 17 in the 2013/14 season between FC Bayern and VfB Stuttgart, and a 1-1 draw is seemingly inevitable. But then Rafinha's cross finds Thiago completely free in the penalty area. The Spaniard hangs in the air, and scissor-kicks it into the bottom right-hand corner: a wonder goal! Not everyone scores goals like that - and FCB supporters got a taste of what was to come with Thiago all those years ago.
He can still do it: Thiago produces similar acrobatics like the one against Stuttgart a few years later:
#3 Thank you for your fighting spirit
The Spanish international is not only a master on the ball, but also gets stuck in in midfield and never shirks a 50/50. Not only did he prove this with some spectacular tackles and ball wins, but the numbers speak for themselves: Thiago won an impressive 58 percent of his 50/50s in the league, the most in Bayern's midfield. In the video you can see the fighter Thiago in action:
#4 Thank you for your rhythm
It is a stereotype to say you have the rhythm of the Samba dance if you have Brazilian roots, but with Thiago it cannot be totally dismissed. At the beginning of this year, the son of former world champion Mazinho offered a very special example of his dancing skills on the pitch. In the Bundesliga match in Mainz, he dribbled his way through the opposing penalty area in an unmatchable manner and finished in the far corner with ice in his veins. The German record champions' fans rightly voted Thiago's dancing lesson Bayern's goal of the month for February.
Here you can watch Thiago's skill in Mainz once more:
#5 Thank you for your extraordinary match intelligence
You can't separate the two - Thiago setting the standard with his work on the ball.
Whenever Thiago was on the field, he was always one of the pivotal points in FC Bayern's game. He was almost always available in midfield and regularly touched the ball more than 100 times a game. Whenever there was something going on on the pitch, Thiago was right in the thick of it.
#6 Thank you for your character
Thiago was an important contact for new players, like here last year with Philippe Coutinho.
It is not only skill on the ball that Thiago brought to FC Bayern, but also his skills off it. Thanks to his time in Munich, the Spaniard now speaks excellent German and has helped time and again to quickly integrate Spanish or Portuguese-speaking signings into the squad. However, Thiago's commitment extends far beyond the football pitch. With the Alcantara Family Foundation, he supports many social projects as well as the fight against the consequences of the coronavirus crisis. Furthermore, as Kids Club Captain he always had an eye out for the youngest members of the Bayern family.
Our no.6 shirt will stay in good hands:
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