2013 was a year of unprecedented success for Bayern as the Bavarians strolled on a record breaking saunter to five titles, signing some of the most exciting young attacking talent in football, and bringing in the most sought after coach in football. Lots of questions face Bayern as they enter the new year, and we’re here to discuss some of the biggest.

(Aside from if Mario Götze will shave off his neckbeard, because that’s obviously the biggest question.)

How will Guardiola keep everyone happy?

This wouldn’t be a proper Bayern article without some negativity, so let’s jump right in. Bayern Munich currently has the deepest and arguably the most complete squad in football, with every position oozing with class. Most of backups, for some positions, would waltz onto most teams starting XI’s.

But with great depth comes great responsibility. Pep Guardiola faces the monumental task of keeping the squad happy with playing time, which could prove difficult. In midfield alone, Guardiola has the talents of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Javi Martinez, Thomas Müller, Mario Götze, Toni Kroos, and Thiago Alcantara. Those are just the players who prefer to play centrally.

Guardiola is a coach famous for almost never playing the same starting XI twice in a row and adapting his tactics specifically for the opponent, but this may leave some players the odd man (or men) out in big games.

Injuries have managed to make player management a bit easier on Guardiola, which is a problem most clubs would love to have. But as players get healthy, Guardiola may find his job of keeping everyone happy a bit more difficult.

What tactical changes will Bayern experience?

Pep Guardiola’s tactics are not quite the same as Jupp Heynckes’s tactics in many respects, but also more similar than many want to acknowledge.

The go-to formation for the Bavarians is different than the 4-2-3-1 that many Bayern fans have come to know and love, as Pep Guardiola has opted to use a 4-1-4-1, which has been met with varying degrees of success and failure. The good thing about the formation is that it can easily morph into a sort of 4-3-3 or even a 4-2-3-1 when Guardiola wants to be more conservative. But it does tend to leave the backline more exposed than usual, as we saw in the second game against Manchester City.

There’s also the question of positional changes. Philipp Lahm has been utilized as a defensive midfielder instead of his natural right-back position due to injuries, but to the Bayern captain’s credit he has adapted seamlessly to the position. While we’re led to believe this is a temporary switch, it’s also a tactical adjustment that Pep has been quick to switch too.

Mario Götze also adds an interesting flair to the attack, as the young German prodigy can play multiple positions. However many signs seem to indicate that Guardiola at least wants Götze as an option for center-forward, or a position at least similar to a false 9. Only time will tell if this experiment yields the results that Guardiola is hoping for.

Will Bayern sign any new players?

This question has pretty much already been answered as the worst kept secret in Germany was just announced on January 4^th: that Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski will be joining Bayern Munich in the summer on a five year contract. Some journalists even had the audacity to call this “breaking news”.

But there’s always the question on if Bayern will sign more players in the future. The club has acknowledged that they are looking to bring in a center-back as Daniel van Buyten’s career comes to an end and Holger Badstuber remains questionable.

There’s also the occasional rumor that Bayern are seeking to bring in more midfielders, one in particular that seems to be gaining traction is that Bayern want Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke and some reports even indicate that Bayern are willing to exchange Xherdan Shaqiri in a deal for the Spanish midfielder. This deal makes little sense, considering that Shaqiri is the ideal replacement for Franck Ribéry and there is already so much talent in the central midfield Bayern barely knows what to do with it all.

Bayern should pursue a center-back as soon as possible and bring in someone to reinforce the backline, but after that no more signings need to happen for the Bavarians. (Related story: Five defenders Bayern should consider in January)

Can Bayern become the first team to repeat the Champions League?

This is the question people have been asking since Bayern won the Champions League last year. Can the Bavarians be the first club to repeat European glory since the Champions League era?

It certainly won’t be easy. Not even Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, for all their European dominance, were able to win the most coveted club trophy in succession. However, Bayern are facing the matter with slightly different circumstances.

For one, Bayern has added more depth to their squad and made themselves more tactically diverse than they were last year. Their depth and change of style makes them harder to predict and beat this year. Even though nobody really wanted to see Heynckes go, an argument could be made that a new coach will also improve Bayern’s chances because teams will have a harder time predicting how to plan for Bayern.

Is there anyone who can stand in Die Roten’s way? The competition is tough, but if there’s any team who can pull a double on the Champions League, it’s this Bayern side.

Can Bayern repeat the treble?

This is cheating a bit, because it ties into the last question. There’s no question that winning the Champions League again will be the hardest part of repeating the historic treble that Bayern won last season.

The league seems to be a different story with Bayern already seven points clear of the rest of the Bundesliga, and nobody seems to be able to keep a pace with them. The league isn’t won yet, but it’s hard to see the Bavarians lose the Bundesliga title this year.

The DFB Pokal is a little trickier, and there’s some competition there. Bayer Leverkusen is forming into a rather imposing side with Stefan Kießling keeping up his tremendous form from last season and Sidney Sam doing that as well.

There’s also Dortmund, who many forget still pose a major threat. In their last encounter, Bayern Munich won 3:0, but the game was far closer than the scoreline indicates. For the first 55 minutes, BVB actually looked the better side and were creating more dangerous chances. BVB was also suffering from some major injury setbacks at the time, and with a fully healthy squad, they can still knock Bayern out of the DFB Pokal if they are having a good day.

Still, it all rests in Europe. If Bayern can repeat their European glory, then it’s likely that they can also repeat their treble glory.

Onward to better things?

2013 was a very good year for Bayern. In fact, it was the club’s best year ever. But that doesn’t mean that 2014 can’t be just as good if not better.

How will 2014 go? It’s difficult to say, but most Bayern fans are pretty optimistic.