Many problems for Nagelsmann
FC Bayern is apparently working on goalkeeper hammer
1/2/2023 3:54 p.m
Defeated World Cup stars, a badly injured captain, no number one: Bayern Munich started the new year with serious problems. Coach Julian Nagelsmann does not have much time to solve these problems, because the first game of the year is a huge challenge.
Hasan Salihamidžić is stressed. FC Bayern will start preparing on Tuesday, but there is still no new number one. The replacement for the seriously injured captain Manuel Neuer should be in Munich by Friday at the latest when the record champions fly to the training camp in Qatar.
Goalkeeper Kevin Trapp (r) is said to be a replacement for Manuel Neuer at Bayern.
(Photo: Federico Gambarini/dpa)
Bayern are said to have even asked Frankfurt’s national goalkeeper Kevin Trapp for “Bild” information. The 32-year-old is under contract with Hessen until 2024. As the newspaper reports, the people of Munich are said to have asked “the Trapp side” whether a change would be an option. So far, however, there has not been an official request from Eintracht. There were initially no official statements about the personnel.
But the unresolved goalkeeper question is not the only problem that worries sports director and coach Julian Nagelsmann before the start. Above all, the broken World Cup stars around Joshua Kimmich and Thomas Müller are a cause for concern. In addition to Neuer, Lucas Hernandez (torn cruciate ligament) and Sadio Mané (rehab after surgery) are also missing. Injured and disappointed – Nagelsmann should initially be more in demand as a pastor.
Bono? Could get really expensive
Salihamidžić is also required as a crisis manager. So far, Gladbach’s Yann Sommer has been the top candidate in goal, after Alexander Nübel, who was loaned to Monaco, can hardly imagine returning to Munich at the moment. In addition to the Trapp rumor, the “Bild” newspaper once again brought up Morocco’s World Cup hero Bono. The 31-year-old, who is under contract with FC Sevilla, could be really expensive like Trapp. “We are examining different scenarios,” Salihamidžić recently told “Sport Bild” when looking for a goalkeeper. With the 34-year-old Sven Ulreich, Munich currently have only one experienced goalkeeper in their squad.
It is also unclear whether Bayern will step up their defense again. Hernandez was considered an alternative left-back position, which would now only be occupied by Alphonso Davies. Salihamidžić is checking “the options on the transfer market,” said Herbert Hainer. The President is nevertheless confident that the battered Bavarians will go into the new year 2023 “without excess baggage”. You know the players “well enough to know: After the winter break, they will now more than ever tackle the big goals with FC Bayern and get back on track”.
“It’s in the DNA of this club”
Nagelsmann does not have much time to raise his stars. The first big challenge is already on January 20th with the Bundesliga top game in Leipzig. In February, the Champions League hit against Paris St. Germain with the superstars Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar awaits.
No reason to worry. “We are FC Bayern and we always see challenges as opportunities – that’s part of the DNA of this club,” emphasized Hainer on the club’s website. He has full confidence in Nagelsmann. He experiences the 35-year-old as “highly professional, very focused and always ready for the next level. Everything is possible with him, even if the Champions League victory is of course not planned.”
On Tuesday, the Bavarians start the year with performance diagnostics on Säbener Straße. From January 6th to 12th we will go to the training camp – and of all places to Qatar, where the DFB stars have just experienced humiliation at the World Cup. Doesn’t help – especially since the goals are, as always, very high. For the eleventh championship in a row, the DFB Cup should finally go to Berlin again. And the final in Istanbul is also planned for the premier class. According to Kahn, he “marked the appointment in red”.