Xabi Alonso and Philipp Lahm get heroes’ send-off in final games for Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich bid farewell to two footballing heroes today as Xabi Alonso and Philipp Lahm played their final games for the club before retirement.

Both key members of the Bayern squad announced their decisions earlier in the campaign, in what will undoubtedly give Carlo Ancelotti a big rebuilding job to do this summer.

Lahm has spent his entire career at Bayern and been club captain since 2011, winning a host of major honours including eight Bundesliga titles and the Champions League.

Between them, it’s quite a trophy haul, with Alonso also one of the most decorated players in the modern era in a career spent at Real Sociedad, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern.

Playing against Freiburg today, Carlo Ancelotti’s side ran out 4-1 winners, with Alonso even picking up an assist to bow out of the game in style.

The pair inevitably got a heroes’ send-off from the fans at the Allianz Arena, with Bayern supporters also celebrating finishing the season as champions of Germany for the fifth consecutive year.

Inevitably, there was a *lot* of beer involved, with even a reporter getting drenched by players on the pitch.

Known in England for his spell at Liverpool, Alonso admitted earlier this week that one big regret from his career was his failure to lift the Premier League trophy during his five years at Anfield.

‘Maybe I have three (regrets),’ Alonso told The Times. ‘With Real Sociedad, my club, we were one game from winning La Liga (in 2002-03). With Liverpool we were so close to the Premier League. With Bayern, so close to the Champions League.

‘But maybe that would be too much to ask, too perfect. If you can call them regrets … but that’s just football.’

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