Munich (dpa) – After the Corona scare at the start of the year, Julian Nagelsmann had to announce the next bad news with Alphonso Davies’ heart muscle inflammation.
After the end of domestic isolation, the 21-year-old Bayern star was examined – and then sent to a forced break of several weeks after returning to training. “Of course there is a probability these days that it comes from a corona infection plus sporting activity, but we don’t know 100 percent,” said Nagelsmann. “But it also has no relevance to the further course of action for him. The fact is: he has it – it’s modest to crappy, to extremely crappy.”
Corona won’t let go of FC Bayern Munich either. After the bad start to the football year in the 1-2 draw against Borussia Mönchengladbach, when Nagelsmann was missing a total of 13 professionals, including nine players around captain Manuel Neuer who had recently tested positive, the next longer absence follows. Last year, the unvaccinated Joshua Kimmich, like Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, had to pause for weeks due to quarantine, infection and lung problems, now it is the young Canadian Davies.
Corona continues to hover over the Nagelsmann team
In addition to Neuer and Corentin Tolisso, who were probably in the starting XI, Dayot Upamecano, Omar Richards, Leroy Sané and Tanguy Nianzou are also back in the squad as change options on Saturday (3:30 p.m. / Sky) against 1. FC Köln Davies would be no real consolation. Although Nagelsmann emphasized that these were signs of mild heart muscle inflammation and that it was “not that dramatic”. Nevertheless, it hits the left-back, who is missing for an “indefinite period”, and the club hard.
“I actually thought that we could bury the Corona issue at some point before Christmas and that it wasn’t always about Corona. Now it’s a lot about Corona again,” said Nagelsmann before the away game. “Phonzie is out of training for the time being and will not be available for the next few weeks either. It needs to heal completely now.”
Nagelsmann will again field a formation on the Rhine in which not every player will appear in his desired or ideal position. Marcel Sabitzer could get a new chance on the left back in the Davies position, Kimmich should appear as a right-back. “We still have a squad that can and should win a Bundesliga game, sometimes in foreign positions,” said the 34-year-old coach.
Prominent failure list
National players Leon Goretzka (in rehab after patellar tendon problems), Josip Stanisic (rehab) and Lucas Hernández (corona infection) are still not there. Kingsley Coman, who had to sit out in the first half of the season due to a minor heart surgery, is also missing in Cologne. After a muscle injury and a corona infection, he is still in rehabilitation training.
In annoying days, Nagelsmann was at least happy about the strong sign of the contract extension with Coman until 2027. After the costly extensions with the winning goal scorer of the Champions League final in 2020 and before that with the managers Kimmich (contract until 2025) and Goretzka (2026 ) but there are tricky decisions to be made in the personal details of Niklas Süle, Serge Gnabry and Corentin Tolisso. The Gnabry contract expires in 2023, that of Süle and Tolisso this summer.
“I don’t get involved in the contractual issues, I’m not involved in any round of negotiations either. I try to present my arguments in a sporty way,” said Nagelsmann, who would not say no to a winter transfer from Munich. “Basically, I’m a big fan of winter transfers, you set new stimuli,” he said. “But the winter market is very difficult, very expensive, very complicated. There is no oil well gushing out of Säbener Strasse, and we don’t have endless coal either.”
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