For the first time in its history, FC Bayern will play against 1. FC Heidenheim on Saturday (3:30 p.m., Sky). Before the Bundesliga game against the newly promoted team, coach Thomas Tuchel sounds the alarm. The many injured players worry him. And they present the 50-year-old with enormous challenges, also with a view to the Champions League.
At the press conference on Friday afternoon at the club’s headquarters on Säbener Strasse, Tuchel’s hay fever was causing problems. But above all, he was annoyed by the personnel situation. “The season is too crazy, the injury situation is too crazy,” he said.
Tuchel will have to do without goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, offensive stars Leroy Sané and Kingsley Coman as well as defender Noussair Mazraoui and midfield shooting star Aleksandar Pavlović for the game in Heidenheim. “None of the five will be spared for Tuesday. They are not in the squad because it is not possible, so they are also questionable for Tuesday. There is no tendency, every day counts,” said Tuchel. His team will play in the first leg of the quarter-finals of the Champions League at Arsenal FC in London on Tuesday (9 p.m., Amazon Prime Video).
Manuel Neuer only trains individually after his torn muscle fiber and is out of Heidenheim
Source: dpa/Uwe Anspach
Goalkeeper Neuer has to get fit again after a torn muscle fiber in his adductors. “With Leroy the main problem is the pubic bone, with Kingsley the problem is the muscles,” explained Tuchel. “He had muscular problems. Thank God we got confirmation that it’s nothing structural, but there are problems that make it impossible for him to play.” Pavlovic caught an infection, “he’s completely flat.”
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Sacha Boey (torn muscle bundle in the left rear thigh), Bouna Sarr (torn cruciate ligament) and Tarek Buchmann (muscle injury) are also still missing. Raphaël Guerreiro is available again after a small muscle fiber tear in his left front thigh.
Thomas Tuchel misses competition
On Friday afternoon, Tuchel seemed annoyed and even frustrated by the personnel situation and the disappointing performance against Borussia Dortmund (0-2) in the league’s top game a week ago. “We want competition and the opportunity to achieve things tactically, for that you need alternatives. “I’m extremely dissatisfied with myself with how we played against Dortmund,” emphasized the coach.
But there is no reason to hide and mope around. “We’re continuing and tried to push the team again. We continue with our heads held high until the end. As unsatisfactory as the season was, we still have one goal: to go to Wembley. We have to give everything to achieve this every day.”
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The Champions League final will take place on June 1st at the legendary Wembley Stadium. “It cannot be the case that we lose even one percent in our conviction and our ambition. We are dissatisfied with the situation, but we will do everything we can to squeeze out the maximum,” said Tuchel.
After the defeat against Dortmund, he congratulated league leaders Bayer Leverkusen on their championship in a television interview; coach Xabi Alonso’s team is 13 points ahead of Bayern. “We have to show a reaction, the basics have to come back into our game, that is the processing of the performance against Dortmund,” said Tuchel. His team expects “the classic challenger, David against Goliath, an emotional stadium that supports the home team” in Heidenheim.
“Can’t press the skip button”
Tuchel continued: “Of course there is a game after next that we are looking at. But we can’t press the skip button, we won’t take anyone away from responsibility. If we want to make the dream come true in the Champions League, we have to deliver top performances every day and tighten up every day. We won’t let anyone off the hook.”
The coach also said: “We all wanted it to be different, we were extremely annoyed, including with our performance and our result. It was the basic virtues in football that we missed. That’s why we have unfinished business with ourselves. For us it’s important to get to our own level every week.”
Heidenheim’s coach Frank Schmidt believes his team can do great things against Bayern
Source: dpa/Tom Weller
Heidenheim’s coach Frank Schmidt believes his team can pull off a surprise against the German soccer record champions. “You have to expect everything with us – even the good,” he said. However, against the best offense in the league, “just defending” is not enough, said Schmidt. “Even then you can eat goals conceded.”
In the first leg, the newly promoted team fought back after being 2-0 down at half-time and equalized after 70 minutes of play. “We were able to strike at any time. But after the 2:2 we became euphoric. That still annoys me,” said Schmidt about the 2:4. “Thank God we’ve evolved.”
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Defensive professional Norman Theuerkauf is not available due to illness. Offensive player Nikola Dovedan is also missing and suspended. Defensive midfielder Lennard Maloney, on the other hand, could return to the starting line-up.
The Heidenheimers are eleventh in the table and have a good chance of staying in the league. From an economic point of view, those responsible already have planning security; the consulting company MHP will remain the club’s main and jersey sponsor until 2027. “This is a great signal,” said CEO Holger Sanwald about the contract extension.
