Alphonso Davies’ rise to stardom with Bayern Munich is amazing
By Quinn Allen
Davies is considered one of the best left-backs in the world and he’s still just 19-years old
Just over two years ago, Alphonso Davies was playing in Major League Soccer for the Vancouver Whitecaps. The youngest player in the league, you could see there was something special in the Edmonton, Alberta native. He dribbled past opponents with ease, while using his blistering pace to surge down the flanks. After being heavily scouted by many top European clubs, Bayern Munich agreed to a 13.5 million move for the Canadian, totaling 22 million after bonuses, a record for an MLS player.
People in North America, in particular, knew that Davies was a special talent. But going from Major League Soccer to the Bundesliga seemed like a huge jump. Once he arrived in Munich, playing time was limited. He made just eight appearances in 2018/19 under Niko Kovacs. Then in early November of 2019, the Croatian was sacked. For the sake of Davies’ career, this was great news. Ever since Hans Flick has taken over at Bayern Munich, the 19-year old has started almost every single match at left-back for the club, pushing seasoned veteran David Alaba to centre-back.
What also needs to be taken into consideration is that Davies was an attacking player before he arrived in Germany. While playing in one of the top leagues in the world, the youngster has learned a brand-new position, going on to succeed at the highest level possible.
Brilliant in Champions League
The Champions League is where Davies has really made a name for himself. He single-handily destroyed Chelsea across two legs in the round of 16, making a ridiculous run down the left flank in which he set up Robert Lewandowski for an easy tap-in at Stamford Bridge. No Blues attacker had any chance of getting past the Canadian international, who’s reached 22.9 mph on a full sprint this season. Whenever a player thinks they have space in front of them, Davies always makes up ground thanks to his tremendous speed. It’s a treat to watch.
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Against Barcelona and his childhood idol Lionel Messi, he once again put forward a fine performance. Davies tallied another world-class assist with another tremendous run down the left, dribbling circles around Nelson Semedo and setting up Joshua Kimmich for an easy finish. For the full 90 minutes, the starlet was extremely solid. He’s the full package at left-back, possessing physicality, speed, and passing abilities like none other. That’s where his experience as an attacker has come in handy.
The former Vancouver Whitecaps standout has enjoyed a rapid rise to stardom. In an interview after Bayern Munich’s Champions League Semifinal win against Lyon on Wednesday where he played beautifully once again, Davies was quick to say “This is a dream come true to play in the UCL Final”.
He’s right. There’s no way that anyone could have predicted that Davies would be at the pinnacle of club football before his 20th birthday. If Bayern Munich beat PSG on Sunday, he would become just the fourth CONCACAF player ever to win a Champions League title. According to transfermarkt, Davies is currently rated at 66 million euros and he could become the first 100 million-rated left-back ever at this rate. The Bavarians have locked him up for the foreseeable future as well, extending his current contract until 2025.
Right now, he’s considered one of the top left-backs in the world and by some, the best. Davies is still extremely young though and will definitely improve as the years go on. Whenever he makes a defensive mistake, Davies is always able to correct it because of his speed. As he gets older and learns more about the position, the 19-year old will be able to cut out those mishaps.
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Although born in Ghana, Davies grew up in Canada. He’s making an entire nation proud and along with Lille’s Jonathan David, is giving the Canadian National Team an array of hope for the future.
But for now, Davies will be looking to grab Europe’s most prized trophy on Sunday against PSG in Lisbon as he looks to shut down an electric attack consisting of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.