People said we were failures, and we were finished. But we are still up there and that is not to be taken for granted, considering what was said over the summer. Of course, we have margin for improvement, but we never wanted to lose our identity, our hunger, our desire to be dominant in Serie A and Europe. We are on the right track, and that is the most important thing.
Yes, Bernd Rauch, the vice-president in charge of basketball at the time, really wanted me. But I said that I needed to know whether Uli Hoeneß, as president, was also behind the move. Bernd rang him immediately and put the phone on speaker. But instead of Marko Pešić, Mr Hoeneß understood the name Micky Stevic, who was head of sport at 1860 at the time, and yelled into the phone that Bernd could forget it.
Müller highlighted a very special identity at Bayern, developed over decades, which is unique and not found elsewhere. He credits Bayern's strong foundations established after their promotion in 1965 with icons like Beckenbauer and Maier.