'Magic four' spurs Reds on

The signing ceremony on Monday, the first individual training session on Tuesday, the first team training and the official presentation on Wednesday – and the first appearance for FC Bayern on Saturday? No, the match in fact will come too early for Serdar Tasci. “He banged his head during training,” reported Matthias Sammer at the press conference on Wednesday afternoon, where he presented the jersey number four, but not the man wearing it. Tasci has to take a breather for two or three days with suspected concussion instead of “stepping it up,” as Tasci had hoped the day before. “It's a little unfortunate,” commented Sammer.

The sporting director is delighted to have the 14-time Germany international at FC Bayern, despite his uneven start. “He's able to help us thanks to his quality and experience.” After Jérôme Boateng and Javi Martínez' injuries the personnel situation in central defence is “uncontrollable,” which is why FCB took action. “We wanted to rein in the chaos to some extent.”

'We can make history'

Tasci excels at “passing, keeping his calm, one-on-ones and speed.” Besides, the former Stuttgart pro impressed with his character in the transfer interviews. “He was incredibly fired up, signalling that he was ready,” reported Sammer. The rest follows the logic of competitive sports: “It's up to him. The better he is, the more frequently he’ll play.”

Tasci will be sidelined for the match away to Leverkusen on Saturday evening. “We have to step up our game,” said Sammer, urging the team to improve further. After all, the German record champions have a firm goal. “We can make German football history. I'm not talking about the Champions League, I mean the magic four. This is what spurs us on,” the sporting director referred to the fourth championship title in a row. The man who wears the number four will soon get the chance to play his part in it.