Last stop, in the heart of America! After a flight of nearly two hours, FC Bayern arrived in Kansas City around midday on Monday for the final leg of this year’s Audi Summer Tour. In the city on the Missouri River, in the centre of the United States, the German record champion will take on AC Milan on Tuesday evening (20:00 local time, 03:00 CEST). After a good performance against Arsenal and an impressive win over Real Madrid, the Reds will be looking to round off what has so far been a successful trip against the Italian side.
“We’re very pleased with our pre-season so far: with our physical but also our footballing work as well as the performances in the two friendlies,” summarised coach Niko Kovac, who expects his side to continue that against Milan. “We have here very attractive opposition with some big-name players, so we want to put on a good display.”
All players set to feature
As with the previous two games in the International Champions Cup, the Bayern boss will use the friendly to try out his players in different positions, but everyone from the first team squad should get roughly the same minutes. “We’ll certainly make changes again but we nevertheless want to bring a very strong squad onto the pitch,” revealed the 47-year-old.
Other than Jérôme Boateng, who has travelled home early, Kovac has a full squad to pick from against the Rossoneri, which is certainly not normal after such an exhausting tour. Therefore he praised the fact they’ve managed to “create a mix” of training and games as well as regeneration, the result of which can be seen in his side’s performance level. “The boys look very fresh and rested despite the long journeys, which shows the trip has been a great success so far,” he concluded.
Enthusiastic reception in Kansas City
The fans have also contributed to the success of the Audi Summer Tour. As with the previous two stops on the tour, they loudly welcomed the Munich men to their hotel on Monday. They were also out in force for the open training session at the Children’s Mercy Park ahead of the match, and Kovac is looking forward to their support in the clash with the 18-time Italian champions. “The stadium is a similar size to the one in Los Angeles. We’re expecting a good atmosphere.”
Topics of this article