“After this session, you’ve totally forgotten your holidays,” gasped a sweat-covered and exhausted Jérôme Boateng. Sunday morning, a quarter to ten, and Bayern’s Germany internationals were officially back at the club. After the Euro 2012 participants’ three-week vacation, boss Jupp Heynckes summoned his captains Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger, plus Manuel Neuer, Holger Badstuber, Boateng, Thomas Müller, Toni Kroos and Mario Gomez to Munich Technical University for the obligatory lactate tests. They were joined by Franck Ribéry, who had already returned to the Säbener Strasse as arranged last Thursday, for Sunday’s benchmarking exercises supervised by Dr Peter Spitzenpfeil.
Despite the gruelling test sequence, in which a heart rate measurement and blood samples from the ear were taken from Lahm and Co after each increased level of running and sprinting intensity, the mood among the group was excellent. Heynckes geed on his nine Euro 2012 participants, Ribéry’s good humour shone through even during the punishing runs, and Schweinsteiger finished the last lap with a smile on his face. “There’s harmony in this group. You really look forward to seeing your team-mates again,” the vice-captain said.
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