When Thomas Müller & Co arrived in Doha at 16.40 local time they enjoyed a warm welcome in two ways. Temperatures of above 20 degrees mean the Bavarians can prepare for the second half of the season in ideal conditions. Besides, local FCB fan club Red Falcons welcomed the Bayern pros at the airport in the desert emirate.
The bulk of the squad, caretakers and journalists needed about five hours to travel from snowy Munich to Doha. Other players, including captain Manuel Neuer, Robert Lewandowski and Arjen Robben, but also sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic travelled independently from their holidays to the Aspire Zone.
First session on Friday evening
Winter signing Alphonso Davies, who will complete his first FCB winter training camp after a few first training sessions in December, was on board. "Alphonso is a great guy, a great person," Salihamidzic said about the "huge talent" from Canada, and added: "If we give him enough time he has huge potential to turn in great performances here."
The 18-year-old has a chance of laying down a marker in Doha. Apart from the days of arrival and departure, head coach Niko Kovac has scheduled two training sessions per day. After a gentle warm-up on Friday evening, Bayern will hit the gas to fine-tune their performance levels, starting with a public training session on Saturday morning.
The coach has no doubt his players are fully focused. The 47-year-old feels that "the lads are fired up to give it everything in the second half of the season and put up a fierce fight against Borussia Dortmund." Arjen Robben agreed: "I want to give it 100 percent after the winter break," the 34-year-old had declared before departure. The Dutchman, who will leave FC Bayern this summer after almost ten years, will complete his last winter training camp with the Bavarians.
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