After four months on the sidelines, Holger Badstuber returned to action in a Bayern shirt in Tuesday evening’s 4-1 victory over the Qatar Stars. Badstuber took over from Jérôme Boateng after 63 minutes of the friendly contest and entered the fray in earnest for the first time since 13 September 2014, when he damaged the tendons in his left thigh in the Bundesliga meeting with VfB Stuttgart. “I’m delighted and it feels good. A match is always different compared to training,” the visibly satisfied centre-back said afterwards.
Extra shift for Manu and Arjen
Manuel Neuer and Arjen Robben failed to feature in the Qatar Stars friendly on Tuesday evening, as Bayern boss Pep Guardiola decided to rest the pair following their late afternoon arrival back in Doha after the FIFA Ballon d’Or Gala in Zurich. The seasoned internationals completed individual workouts at the Aspire Academy instead.
Löw: Lahm would have been Player of the Century
Following the Ballon d’Or Gala on Monday, Joachim Löw paid a special tribute to his former Germany captain Philipp Lahm. The national team coach advised FIFA to introduce an award for the Player of the Century in the future. “And that would be Philipp Lahm for example,” Löw stated, pointing out that the defender featured at the World Cup finals in 2006, 2010 and 2014, with one World Cup triumph and two further semi-final appearances. The Munich-born stalwart had always turned in “outstanding performances,” Löw said.
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