Club record and Schweinsteiger comeback

FC Bayern have set a new club record by conceding only three goals in the first 12 matches of the current Bundesliga campaign, so congratulations are due to Manuel Neuer, Jérôme Boateng and Co. Only one team in the history of the modern German top flight boasted a superior defensive record after 12 games, VfB Stuttgart with just two goals conceded in the 2003/04 campaign.

Comeback for Basti, Rode’s first goal

Bastian Schweinsteiger ended a 132-day injury lay-off with his appearance as a substitute against Hoffenheim. The FCB vice-captain’s most recent previous game was Germany’s 1-0 victory over Argentina in the World Cup Final in Brazil back in July. On Saturday, Schweinsteiger supplied the assist for Bayern’s fourth goal, which was also summer signing Sebastian Rode’s first in a red shirt.

GPS visits FCB junior team

Last week, FC Bayern unveiled a partnership with Global Premier Soccer (GPS) on the United States. GPS officials led by Peter and Joe Bradley and a number of US-based coaches are currently in Munich for a three-day workshop at Bayern’s Säbener Strasse youth academy. “We want to introduce our visitors to our philosophy and explain our structures,” commented Sebastian Dremmler, FCB junior team match operations manager. A delegation headed by Dremmler will return the favour in early December, spending a few days in Boston, Massachusetts, to assess and inspect GPS’s facilities. “Our goal is to make it a lively partnership over the years to come,” Dremmler explained.