Jupp Heynckes was formally introduced as Bayern Munich’s interim manager on Monday, declaring that despite having retired four years ago he was “looking forward to the challenge” of leading the club through the remainder of the season, which will conclude a few days after his 73rd birthday. “Critics say I’ve been out of the game for four years but football’s not been reinvented,” said Heynckes, who will take charge of the team for the first time against Freiburg on Saturday. “Age is a number and nothing more. Some feel old at 45 but I’ve not changed. I still love music and sport. I feel young.”
In July Turkey’s search for a new manager led them to the 72-year-old Mircea Lucescu, whose first job in international management came in 1981, half his lifetime ago. Last month Crystal Palace handed Roy Hodgson the task of rescuing their dire situation, making him the first man aged over 70 to be appointed manager by a Premier League club. “It’s a drug that gets in your veins and stays there,” he said. “At the moment I’m feeling as good as I’ve ever felt. You can’t tear up your birth certificate but it’s how you feel.”
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