Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick says he is “completely relaxed” but knows his job is on the line when the Bundesliga resumes this weekend.
The record German champions again find themselves playing catch-up at the half-way stage of the league season, but the mood in Munich is upbeat after what was seen as a positive winter break training camp in Doha. 
Buoyed also by a new sponsorship deal with one of the country’s leading car manufacturers and a long-time partner, Bayern begin their assault on a possible eighth straight league title when they visit Hertha Berlin on Sunday.
Flick has done his hopes of landing the permanent coaching job no harm since stepping up to replace Niko Kovac in November. An initial stop-gap appointment has been extended until the end of the season.
Flick’s future will now depend on whether Bayern can make up a four-point deficit on leaders RB Leipzig and also progress in the Champions League, with Chelsea a difficult further obstacle in the last 16.
After winning eight of 10 games, the 54-year-old is enjoying the head coaching job and can no longer envisage a return to a number 2 role should Bayern choose in the end to appoint a new coach from outside.
“I am really enjoying it,” he said during the training week in Doha. “Bayern is a top club with so much power. Let’s wait and see what the future brings.”
The Bayern management, which now includes former keeper Oliver Kahn, have given every impression of liking what they have seen of Flick’s work, but all will now depend on results in the coming months.
The coach also appears to have the full backing of leading players, and Flick himself is pleased with the spirit in the team and praised the way it responded to a more intensive training regime in Doha. 
“It’s good when the guys are content. When they know: The training has done me a lot of good, it has helped me to progress. The general mood is excellent, we have a good mentality in the team,” he said.
At the same stage a year ago, Bayern resumed after the winter break six points behind Borussia Dortmund, but Kovac led the team to the league and cup double in his first season in charge.
That rescued his position which had appeared under threat until a spell of five straight wins before the winter break. 
However the coaching seat is never safe at Bayern, and when performances dipped early this season, the club were quick to part company with Kovac.
Bayern midfielder/defender Joshua Kimmich said: “I am in my fifth year at Bayern and already have had five coaches, which is not typical for a club like Bayern.”
Like others in the squad, though, he has put in a good word for Flick, praising not only the coach’s empathetic ways but also his tactical approach.
“The way we are playing is more attractive,” he said. “We are attacking higher up, we are pressing higher, we are forcing the opponents to make mistakes.
“We players are happy and you see that.”
Forward Thomas Mueller said Flick, whom he also knew well as assistant coach to Joachim Loew with the German national squad, had given the players clear guidelines. 
“I knew what sort of person he is but his qualities as head coach was something I could not assess 100 per cent. But the way he talks to the team is very positive,” he said.
Flick’s future could also influence the plans of captain and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who wants to see what develops before deciding an any extended contract deal.
“For me the first most important thing is what happens with Hansi Flick,” 33-year-old Neuer said when asked on a possible two-year extension from the end of next season.