It's a mark of a true genius that he's always right – even when he's hopelessly wrong. "It's not easy to fire Van Gaal," Louis van Gaal had predicted on Friday, "the question who will follow is a very difficult one to answer."

The Bayern Munich president, Uli Hoeness, the chief executive, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, chief financial officer, Karl Hopfner, and the sporting director, Christian Nerlinger, took five and a half hours trying to find a solution to the conundrum on Sunday. All short and long-term measures were discussed and discarded as either impractical or undesirable. The best they could come up with was "keep calm and carry on".

On Monday, it was announced that the Dutchman would be allowed to stay in the job until the end of the season.

It was a remarkable turnaround in the space of less than 48 hours and a curious decision in more ways than one. Internally, Van Gaal's dismissal if they were to lose at Hannover on Saturday had been seen as a given, especially since Hoeness had explicitly threatened that very move over a month ago.

"If qualification for the Champions League is in danger, I get nervous," Hoeness had said, "that was the case with Jürgen Klinsmann, too". The manager-impersonator from Huntington Beach, California, was fired when Bayern slipped to third in the spring of 2009.

The champions' 3-1 defeat at Hannover, the third in a row after a 3-1 reverse to Dortmund and crashing out of the German Cup (2-0 v Schalke), saw them slide to fifth. No Bayern manager could have been expected to be forgiven for such a run, least of all Van Gaal, whose stubbornness has long cost him the support of Hoeness. "We have to act, not talk," was all the president would say on his way out of the stadium on Saturday evening.

The fact that "Mr Bayern" did not get his way the next day points to a power shift. Rummenigge, nick named "Killer-Kalle" for his ruthless, heartless demeanour, seems to have grown into a much more rational, conciliatory figure and has managed to push through an unlikely compromise.

Bayern must have dismissed fears of a lame duck scenario in light of challenges that are surely big enough (Champions League second leg against Internazionale and the fight for third place) to keep the players motivated.

There is, however, an interesting question about the relationship between Van Gaal and his players. Captain Philipp Lahm reportedly told Nerlinger that the team were still behind the manager, broadly speaking, but Bayern's chaotic performances have raised doubts within the dressing room.

The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper summed up the charge sheet perfectly: "Van Gaal is dogmatic without a plan B … Now that explanations for the weakness of Bayern's season [World Cup tiredness, Arjen Robben's injury] are no longer valid, he's at the centre of criticism. Why did he refuse to invest in defensive players [in the summer]? Why the constant positional changes? Why is he not interested in practising defensive dead-ball situations?"

Even his staunchest defenders will have noticed that a certain arrogance has crept into his decisions. In the last few weeks, Van Gaal was moving players across the pitch like pawns on a chessboard. Gustavo was not the only one to play in three different positions in one game.

The football professor was convinced his 4-2-3-1 system was so perfect that the personnel did not matter. Sadly, the opposite is true: Bayern's style has become so entrenched and predictable that more and more teams are able to take the appropriate measures. To make matters worse – much worse – the high priest of possession football from Amsterdam has not shown any inclination to develop a defensive methodology worthy of the name.

Can he adapt, can he change his ways in time to ward off total collapse – a defeat to Inter and a Bundesliga finish outside the top three? Bayern clearly feel that sticking with him is the lesser risk. "He has certainly made mistakes," the Bayern icon Franz Beckenbauer said. "But he's also shown that he's a great coach. I prefer him to any emergency solutions."

Maybe but his continued employment can also be seen in a different way: it's a testament to the sheer size of the crisis.

Talking Points

• Dortmund remain firmly on course for the title but they are not exactly champions of efficiency. Robert Lewandowski's goal was scant reward for 90 minutes of dominance against Cologne. The home side had more scoring opportunities than some teams create in a season. Michael Rensing was inspired in the visitors' goal while Jürgen Klopp's men need only five more wins to claim the "salad bowl".

• Felix Magath's love for unusual glasses is well documented but this week he took it to a new level. On Friday, the Schalke manager borrowed sport shades from the team's bus driver (model: Adidas Evil Eye) to hide an infection and he followed that up for the match at Stuttgart on Saturday with a black number that was equal parts Dr Octopus and Belarussian village pimp.

The referee Dr Felix Brych was not intimidated. He sent off Benedikt Höwedes for handball in the box and awarded a penalty that Zdravko Kuzmanovic converted. Brych had not spotted Pavel Pogrebniak's push on Höwedes beforehand.

Magath called the referee "irresponsible" and even the Stuttgart manager, Bruno Labbadia, felt the red card for the defender had been unnecessary. The decision might strengthen the German FA's case for a rule change but it will not help Magath deflect too much attention from Schalke's slide and the increasing discontent with his work within the club. "Magath out!" shouts in the stands led to reports that the board are planning to get rid of him at the end of the season, success in the German Cup and the Champions League notwithstanding.

• Eintracht Frankfurt's unspeakably bad form since the winter break – not a single goal in eight games – has coach Michael Skibbe looking over his shoulder, too. The Frankfurter Rundschau newspaper felt that the goalless draw with Kaiserslautern was "the worst performance of the season and in many years". The game was so poor that even the TV highlights package was unwatchable. "I'm sorry for looking clueless – I am not," Skibbe said. This week's trip to Schalke might be his last game in charge.

• Bayer Leverkusen, easy 3-0 winners over the increasingly dishevelled Wolfsburg, experienced managerial trouble of a different sort. Jupp Heynckes's continued refusal to sign a new contract – his deal expires in June – is now seen in a worrying light. The 65-year-old did not only crop up on the shortlist of possible Van Gaal successors but might also force Bayer into making an uncomfortable choice between his services and those of Michael Ballack.

The 34-year-old was hoping to get a chance to impress Germany manager Jogi Löw on Saturday but withdrew from the squad when Henyckes told him he would not start. According to the manager, Ballack argued he would be better off training instead.

The move did not go down well with his team-mates – Bayer had only four substitutes available – and the dispute threatens to overshadow Bayer's excellent run in the league, where they are on course for a Champions League place.

"Heynckes, a man who values harmony, is unsure what to make of Ballack," writes Kicker. "He has a problem with Ballack's self-image and sees a danger to the peace and quiet he needs to work with his team." Bild thinks the two parties are heading for a divorce.

• "Babak Rafati," the Sky Germany reporter revealed, "was voted worst official by the players last season." It was interesting to hear about the existence of this "wooden whistle" award but no one will have been taken aback by the identity of its recipient.

The 40-year-old Rafati's continued appointments are one of the great mysteries of German football, along with Löw's always inch-perfect, never changing, pitch black barnet and "sporting director" Horst Heldt's exact duties at Schalke.

On Sunday, Rafati managed to award a goal when a shot by Hamburg's Marcell Jansen's hit the crossbar and bounced down well in front of the line. Hamburg went on to crash to a 4-2 home defeat against Mainz, a result that hampers their European ambitions. Later that evening, the club's board decided not to renew the contract of chief executive Bernd Hoffmann. The 47-year-old will leave at the end of the year.

• Nuremberg's 5-0 win over St Pauli has them dreaming of the Europa League and 45,000 fans stayed behind to celebrate the victory with the squad. The stand-in striker Christian Eigler was the man of the match with four goals but the whole team have excelled. "We need five more points to get to our second half of the season target," said manager Dieter Hecking, "then we can deal with other topics." In a season where the natural distinction between big and small clubs is rapidly vanishing, Nuremberg are about to spring the biggest surprise of all.

Results: Dortmund 1 Cologne 0; Stuttgart 0 Schalke 1; Eintracht Frankfurt 0 Kaiserslautern 0; Borussia Mönchengladbach 2 Hoffenheim 0; Hannover 3 Bayern Munich 1; Nuremberg 5 St Pauli 0; Bayer Leverkusen 3 Wolfsburg 0; Freiburg 1 Werder Bremen 3; Hamburg 2 Mainz 4.

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