Thomas Muller backs Philipp Lahm to become Bayern Munich's next manager

Bayern Munich forward Thomas Muller has backed club and Germany legend Philipp Lahm to succeed Jupp Heynckes as the Bavarian outfit's new manager next season.

The German champions were managed by Carlo Ancelotti at the start of the 2017/18 season. The Italian boss, who took charge at the Allianz Arena in the summer of 2016, won the title in his first season with Bayern.

However, the Bundesliga winners were unhappy with the progress made under the former Chelsea and Real Madrid manager. They showed him the exit door in September 2017 and Heynckes took charge of the club until the end of the season.

Lahm announced his retirement from professional football after the end of the last season. There are reports of him coming back to the club, but it is still not clear in what capacity. Muller, who played alongside the former defender for both club and country, has backed Lahm to be Bayern's manager next season.

"Philipp is always going to be linked with a return, regardless of the position," Muller was quoted as saying by the Bundesliga's official website.

"He lived and breathed Bayern, and is someone who can see the bigger picture. He has the necessary experience, knows the team inside out, and obviously brings a lot to the table. Otherwise he wouldn't have been a candidate for the sporting director's job last summer."

Mueller has played under Louis van Gaal, Heynckes, Spaniard Pep Guardiola and Ancelotti. All four of them are of different nationalities, and Muller was asked if he would prefer a German coach or if he would be willing to take a foreigner as Bayern's next boss.

He said, "It doesn't matter if they use hands or feet, and it doesn't matter what languages they speak, as long as they can communicate with the team easily. And there are definitely a number of ways to do that."

Meanwhile, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp's agent Marc Kosicke has backed the former Borussia Dortmund manager to be a good choice for Bayern. The German's successor at the Signal Iduna Park, Thomas Tuchel, has also been linked with the job at the Allianz Arena.