Bundesliga: Manuel Neuer to miss Bayern v. Freiburg clash
Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer will miss his team’s top-of-the-table matchup with Bundesliga leaders Freiburg on Sunday due to persisting shoulder issues.
According to coach Julian Nagelsmann:
“Manuel won’t play, he is still in pain. I hope he can be back next week, but Freiburg will be too early for him,” said Nagelsmann, whose team will now be without their captain for a second game in a row.
“It’s annoying, but that’s how it is.”
Despite having played every minute of the league season thus far, the 36-year-old missed Bayern’s 4-2 Champions League victory over Viktoria Plzen in the middle of the week due to a bruised shoulder.
Julian Nagelsmann declared that Sven Ulreich, a substitute goalkeeper, would take over for him on Sunday.
Bayern has only won one of their past six Bundesliga games, so they are still under a great deal of pressure going into the match against Freiburg.
The defending champions are now in fourth position, four points behind league leaders Union Berlin and two points behind second-placed Freiburg.
Nagelsmann stressed that it was up to Bayern to catch the two surprise packages at the top of the table with Freiburg playing in Munich and Union hosting Borussia Dortmund this weekend.
He said; “It’s less about Union and Freiburg’s performances and more about our own. It’s up to us to get back to where we want to be.”
The pressure on Nagelsmann has risen as a result of Bayern’s worst start to a season in 12 years. Nagelsmann had previously come under fire following Bayern’s Champions League quarterfinal loss to Villarreal last season.
The 35-year-old coach was supported this week by club CEO Oliver Kahn, who claimed there were “no doubts” about the caliber of his work.
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