Bundesliga

"Alphonso Davies is top class" - Herbert Hainer

"See that, Herr Hainer?" Alphonso Davies (r.) has been singled out for praise by Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer.
"See that, Herr Hainer?" Alphonso Davies (r.) has been singled out for praise by Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer.

Robert Lewandowski led the way for goals and Thomas Müller topped the assist charts, but Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer says Alphonso Davies was his pick of the 2019/20 season.

Davies, 19, enjoyed a breakout campaign at Bayern as the record champions successfully defended their Bundesliga and DFB Cup titles. The Canada international made 42 appearances in all competitions, earning the Bundesliga's Rookie of the Season prize and receiving a nomination for the 2020 Golden Boy award.

"It's hard to single out one person in this great team, they were all sensational," Hainer, who replaced Uli Hoeneß as president in November 2019, told the Bayern website."But the development of Alphonso Davies has given me a lot of pleasure."

Watch: All of Alphonso Davies' Bundesliga goals and assists in 2019/20

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Hainer, Bayern and the watching world. Davies started all but two of the double-winners' 24 Bundesliga matches under head coach Hansi Flick, producing three goals and four assists from left-back.

It is a position he made his own, despite competition from Bayern academy product David Alaba - who moved inside to accommodate the Canadian's brilliance following injuries to Lucas Hernandez and Niklas Süle - and having started out as an attacking wide player.

As well as setting a new Bundesliga speed record of 22.7 mph in Bayern's title-clinching win over Werder Bremen, he also started five of the club's six matches en route to claiming a record 20th DFB Cup and has helped the Bavarian giants carve out a 3-0 lead in their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie with English Premier League outfit Chelsea.

With the treble very much on - the Champions League resumes in August - it's no wonder Hainer is so impressed with Golden Boy nominee Davies.

"He's been a real hit: he is absolutely top-class on the pitch and with his young, fresh manner, he is well on the way to becoming a popular figure," the Bayern chairman said. "The boy makes us very happy."

Hainer (l.) welcomed former goalkeeper and Bayern and Germany legend Oliver Kahn to the club’s board in January 2020.

Bayern - who last won the Champions League as part of an unprecedented treble in 2012/13 - host Chelsea on 8 August, with the winner slated to face either Barcelona or Napoli in a single-leg quarter-final in Portugal.

Bundesliga rivals RB Leipzig, Pep Guardiola's Manchester City and Thomas Tuchel's Paris Saint-Germain are among the 12 teams left in the competition.

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