Because Thomas Tuchel mentioned it himself, it is probably also permissible to imagine it visually: Alphonso Davies waking up from a short nap in a Cologne day hotel on Friday afternoon and asking himself the classic W-questions. Where am I, what time is it, why am I here? Thomas Tuchel would perhaps add another “W” at this point: And what’s all that about?
The FC Bayern coach used the press conference before the away game at 1. FC Köln to combine the useful with the pleasant. He thought it would be useful to renew his criticism of the German Football League’s schedule, which has given FC Bayern a Friday evening game after an international trip for the second time this season – this time even away. Tuchel, who was only allowed to welcome professionals like Alphonso Davies (international in Canada) and Min-jae Kim (in China) back one day before the game, after flights of more than ten hours, spoke of a “very, very, very unfortunate appointment.” with solid jet lag. This time, however, Tuchel took the opportunity to combine his domestic disapproval with an international appeal.
“I can tell you that the feedback from the national coaches is that the top players who play at the highest level in the Champions League and national team are tired. Mentally tired, emotionally tired, physically tired,” said Tuchel. The match calendar is “at the absolute limit, if not beyond it, and it’s not just about seeing the minutes played. The players spend so many hours on the bus, in the hotel, on the plane, plus the time difference, it’s stressful “. And if something – attention, philosophical conclusion! – is not in the spirit of the player, then it is “not in the spirit of the game either”.
Have they decided to form a wagon fort in the club that has been so restless recently?
What was missing from this list was the famous fast pace of football, which the coach took advantage of on Thursday. While FC Bayern was recently seen as a tumultuous club with departed board members, absent defenders and an overall high diversity of opinions, Tuchel was now able to present it as a haven of calm: “You can offer stressed and/or dejected national players (DFB!) who have returned “an environment “Where you feel safe and calm, where you can get away from things sometimes”.
In fact, there are increasing indications that Uli Hoeneß’s recent statement in Kicker that “a unity is forming between the team and coach” could not only be of a tactical nature, but also of a truthful nature. On Thursday, Tuchel once again praised Leroy Sané and Joshua Kimmich as “absolute key players” and expressed his respect for Leon Goretzka (“very impressive”) for “biting his teeth with his broken hand and putting himself in the service of the team.” . The squad is small, the pace of play is fast – Bayern have obviously decided to use these challenges to build a fortress. Whether this plan succeeds, however, could depend on whether the national players are awake again at kick-off in Cologne.
