Bayern München U19

The A-Junioren Bundesliga is where the season is measured, and against it the deeper run of 2023-24 stands out: the U19s reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Youth League, the furthest they have gone in that competition.

The side plays at the Grünwalder Stadion, the old municipal ground on Grünwalder Straße, which holds 15,000 and belongs as much to TSV 1860 Munich as to anyone — one reason the Munich derby at this age group carries something the fixture list does not explain.

The trophies that matter came early in the century. Bayern's under-19s took the Deutsche Jugendmeisterschaft in 2001, beating Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 in the final, and again in 2002 and 2004, the last of them a 3-0 win over VfL Bochum.

What the team is judged on now is not silverware. Jamal Musiala passed through this side before becoming a fixture in the senior team, and the route he took is the one the coaching staff point to: the squad is rebuilt every year by design, which makes continuity in results harder than it would be anywhere else.

Fixtures against Borussia Dortmund keep their weight down the age groups; the two academies recruit from the same pool and meet often enough for the results to be remembered.

The immediate task is the same as it has been: hold a position in the A-Junioren Bundesliga strong enough to reach the national play-offs, and keep sending players up before they are old enough to be needed here.