How 18 months at Bayern transformed Alphonso Davies from an MLS winger into one of the world's best full-backs

How 18 months at Bayern transformed Alphonso Davies from an MLS winger into one of the world's best full-backs

On Tuesday, Davies seeks to contain the Bundesliga's best right flank - Dortmund's Achraf Hakimi and Jadon Sancho.

WHEN Canada, Mexico and the United States decided to pick a young player to make their opening gambit to a conference hall-full of FIFA delegates in Moscow ahead of the vote for the hosting rights of 2026 World Cup, someone who might star in that tournament eight years away, they turned to a generally unheard of Canadian teenager. A few more people have heard of him now.

That Canadian teenager was Alphonso Davies, the young full-back now considered one of the very best in the European game. The 19-year-old who, in the space of just four short years, went from making his MLS debut at the prodigious age of just 15 to becoming a key figure for Bayern Munich. 

Whichever way it is viewed, his rise has been remarkable. Born in a Ghanian refugee camp to Liberian parents fleeing conflict in their homeland, it’s impossible to listen to Davies’ story and not believe in the capacity of sport to produce fairytales from time to time. There may well be a few more chapters to be written too.

Very little fuss was made, at least in European football circles, when Bayern Munich paid £10 million for Davies in the summer of 2018. The youngster had shown potential for the Vancouver Whitecaps, but there was no guarantee that Davies would succeed at one of the biggest clubs in the game. 

Signed as an exciting yet inconsistent winger, Davies has been converted into a full back at the Allianz Arena. Like so many of the best modern full backs, the Canadian is capable of dominating an entire wing on his own. His tally of five assists and two goals in 23 Bundesliga starts ranks him among Bayern Munich’s most productive players this season and has contribution has not gone unnoticed by his teammates.

“He's blessed with an incredible sprint, the kind we haven't had at Bayern for a long time,” Thomas Muller explained after a particularly impressive display Davies earlier in the season. “He fully deserved the applause from the fans at full-time. Since he's been here, he's learned a great deal, tactically speaking.”

Muller is right to pinpoint the pace Davies possesses. Bayern Munich find themselves in the midst of a generational transition, with the retirement of Frack Ribery and Arjen Robben last summer marking the end of an era. Philippe Coutinho and Ivan Perisic were signed as replacements of sort, but they are players of a very different mould.

Davies has replaced some of the vertical drive lost with the exit of Ribery and Robben, but most rare for a player of his age is that he also boasts a consistent final product, as illustrated by the number of goals he has had a direct involvement in this season. Bayern Munich are somewhere between the Old Guard and a new generation, but in Davies they have someone to build around for years to come.

Niko Kovac might have given Davies his breakthrough moment at the Allianz Arena, but the appointment of Hansi Flick as Bayern Munich boss has only accelerated the teenager’s development further. “Davies brings his strengths to the pitch and wins a lot of defensive balls with his pace,” Flick said. “He was originally signed as a winger, but he's doing an incredible job at left-back. His development has been phenomenal.” 

This week’s Der Klassiker clash with Borussia Dortmund will present Davies with another opportunity to showcase just how important has become to Bayern Munich. The Canadian will be pitted directly against Achraf Hakimi and Jadon Sancho down the left flank on Tuesday evening, a challenge for anyone, but there’s no reason to believe he won’t handle the task. He has, after all, handled everything that has been asked of him since that speech in Moscow.

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