Gomez, Alaba and Contento on track

There was no team training on Tuesday, but that didn't stop the sweat flowing in buckets in the Säbener Strasse Performance Center, as Mario Gomez and Diego Contento pounded away on exercise bikes, and David Alaba put in a shift on the AlterG, a specialised treadmill with variable weight distribution. All three players are working hard towards comebacks from injury and surgery.

The long-term injury victims currently spend around four hours a day with the club's fitness staff and physios, divided roughly equally between training and physiotherapy. All three are aiming to resume the full squad programme as soon as possible – and the news at the present time is overwhelmingly positive. Gomez, who underwent surgery on his ankle just under a month ago, and Alaba (stress fracture of the foot) are bang on track, with Contento already a step further on in his recovery from a similar injury to Alaba’s: the full-back should be in a position to start a programme of jogging and running in the next few days.