FC Bayern had mixed feelings after the Bundesliga restart. After victories in the Supercup and the first round of the DFB Cup, the German record champions beat TSG Hoffenheim 3-1, sealing the third victory in the third competitive match under new boss Niko Kovac, getting off to a perfect start to the season. However, the Munich men paid for the victory with Kingsley Coman's injury, a syndesmosis ligament tear above the left ankle.
"Of course we're very sad Kingsley sustained the same injury again," Kovac said after Saturday's training session. Coman was "on a very good path to where he had already been." Now "it's important to keep all our fingers crossed that the surgery is a success so he returns and recovers in a way that he can play in the Bundesliga soon."
Coman's injury during his comeback
Joshua Kimmich called the injury "very bitter." Coman had sustained the same injury back in February and had been sidelined for several months, missing the World Cup in Russia. The match against Hoffenheim was his first league match since the goalless draw against Berlin, when he sustained the first injury. "He'd just recovered from an injury. I was shocked on the pitch," revealed Kimmich.
Thomas Müller had handed Bayern the lead before Coman hobbled off. After the equaliser against the run of play, Robert Lewandowski restored the lead from the spot, Arjen Robben, who had taken over from Coman, closing out the match in the frantic closing stages. "But it was a hard piece of work," admitted Bayern's head coach after the third competitive victory.
Bayern turn the tide
Kimmich too spoke of a "top start, even if not everything went well." After Coman's injury shortly before the break, Bayern's play suffered a "setback." Captain Manuel Neuer agreed: "The first half was good. Then we had a weak phase, but we weathered it well and deservedly won the match." After the match Kovac said his team played "too passively" at times in the second half: "I didn't like it. But then we turned the tide, which was good."
As a reward, Kovac awarded his men two days free of training after Saturday morning's session. The Bavarians will resume training on Tuesday morning to prepare for Bastian Schweinsteiger's farewell match against his current club Chicago Fire in the evening. The match will surely be a welcome opportunity for the coach and his team to further fine-tune their play for the long season ahead.
Topics of this article