Martín Demichelis, Xabi Alonso and other ex-Bayern Munich players to move into coaching
Former Bayern Munich defender Martín Demichelis will return to the Bundesliga from next season after replacing Ole Werner as RB Leipzig head coach. However, he is far from the first ex-Bayern player to try their hand at coaching. Here are a few of the more recent examples to swap the Allianz Arena for the dugout…
Martín Demichelis
Demichelis joined Bayern as a player from River Plate in 2003 and spent the next seven years in Bavaria. It was ultimately the most successful stint of his playing career, winning four Bundesliga titles and as many DFB Cups, while also narrowly missing out on the 2010 UEFA Champions League, with Bayern losing to Inter Milan in the final.
After hanging up his boots in 2017, the former FIFA World Cup runner-up immediately became assistant coach at Málaga, where he played his final game, before joining Bayern in 2019, first as a youth team coach before taking over the side’s second team. After spells at River Plate – where he won the Argentinian league title - Monterrey and Mallorca, he was given the Leipzig reins from the 2026/27 season.
One of the most exciting coaches in European football, Alonso enjoyed a stellar three years at Bayern, bringing an end to his glittering playing career, which included World Cup, Champions League and European Championship winner's medals. Nevertheless, he had his eyes set on coaching and joined Real Madrid’s youth academy in 2018.
Following a spell at Real Sociedad B in his native Basque Country, Alonso was named Bayer Leverkusen head coach in October 2022. Within two years, he was a Bundesliga and DFB Cup champion, doing so during a historic unbeaten domestic season – it was also the Werkself’s maiden Meisterschale. At the end of the 2024/25 season, he moved on to take the hot seat at Real and, while his spell there ended prematurely after six months, he joined Chelsea ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.
Watch: Xabi Alonso's Bundesliga story
A legend of the modern game, Klose ended his 18-year playing career in 2016 having become, at the time, the leading World Cup goalscorer in history with 16 strikes. He also spent four years at Bayern, scoring 53 goals in 149 games across all competitions and winning two Bundesliga titles and two DFB Cups.
Given his success on the international stage, it was perhaps no surprise to see him join the Germany national team set-up as a coach for a couple of years before returning to Bayern in 2018, first working with the youth team before becoming Hansi Flick’s assistant. His first lead role came in Austria at Rheindorf Altach, while he has been at Bundesliga 2 outfit Nuremberg since June 2024, recently signing an extension to keep him at the club until 2028.
Watch: The best of Miroslav Klose
During a career that was spent almost exclusively in Germany, Berlin-born Kovač spent two years at Bayern as a player between 2001 and 2003 alongside brother Robert. Those 24 months saw him win one Bundesliga and one DFB Cup apiece, something he would replicate from the dugout after calling time on his on-field days.
After taking charge of Croatia for two years, his first club coaching role was Eintracht Frankfurt, where he lifted the cup by beating Bayern, who he had already agreed to join for 2018/19 and would go on to win the domestic double in his first and only full campaign at the club. A difficult start to the following term saw him relieved of his duties and, after mixed results at Monaco and Wolfsburg, he led Borussia Dortmund to a respectable second place in the 2025/26 Bundesliga.
Thiago
Initially signed by Pep Guardiola, Thiago was the creative hub of Bayern’s midfield between 2013 and 2020. It was a successful period in his career, as he won seven Bundesliga titles and the Champions League in 2020 before making the switch to Liverpool.
Given that he only retired in 2024, it is still early days in his coaching career, but he is learning from one of the best at Barcelona in Flick, to whom he is an assistant. It remains to be seen when or whether he will venture out on his own in the future.
Watch: The best of Thiago
Dante
Brazilian centre-back Dante spent four years at Bayern between time at Borussia Mönchengladbach and Wolfsburg, lifting the Bundesliga trophy in each season and the treble in 2013. That was between 2012 and 2016, and he only retired earlier this year after becoming the oldest player to ever appear in the Europa League while at Nice.
It didn’t take long for him to make his next move, as he was appointed Bayern II head coach ahead of the 2026/27 Regionalliga term. “I’m so incredibly excited for this role at my former club Bayern and want to thank the management for their trust in me,” he said upon his unveiling.
