Niko Kovač discusses the goals during his first year in charge | OneFootball

Niko Kovač was candid in an interview with German magazine Kicker which was excerpted online early.

While the challenge of managing a club as large as Bayern Munich seemed beyond the Croatian at points near the beginning of the season, Kovač has since righted the ship.

Bayern are now just two points behind league-leaders Borussia Dortmund, who play their 22nd match on Monday.

The club are similarly competitive in both the Champions League, in which they will face Liverpool on Tuesday, and the DFB-Pokal, where they’ll play second-tier FC Heidenheim in the quarter-final.

“We are here to win the title, you have to be at Bayern,” Kovač said. The former Eintracht Frankfurt boss took over at Bayern for Jupp Heynckes during the summer.

Behind in the Bundesliga title race, Bayern’s best chances for silverware may well be the DFB-Pokal. “This is the evil in humans that this title is bad-talked,” the manager countered assumed denigration of the domestic cup.

“It’s not that easy to become a cup winner, and what a high priority the Supercup has in Spain, for example!”

“Unfortunately, this is of our society: everything is made rotten, there is nothing positive.”

Kovač acknowledged that a treble was a possibility but pointed out that talent is not always enough at the highest level.

“We can still win titles in three competitions”, the manager said. “But you also need luck in the Champions League.”

As observers look to critique and classify the Bayern Munich’s first year under the stewardship of Niko Kovač, Kicker asked the man himself.

“Crucial is how we see it internally – to be realistic. Fantasies would be naive. It’s not a foregone conclusion against Liverpool, but rather a story with 50-50 chances.”