Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel said on Friday that the Bavarian team was not going to “rush anything” regarding the upcoming return to competition of its goalkeeper and captain Manuel Neuer after 12 months of absence. “The sensational good news is that Manu is back in training,” Tuchel said at a press conference, while specifying that Bayern “would not get carried away and rush, despite the euphoria that we we all feel and that I feel. This is why we are still waiting for a few more training sessions,” warned the former PSG and Chelsea coach.
The 50-year-old manager indicated that number two goalkeeper Sven Ulreich would be in goal for Bayern’s next two away matches, at Mainz and Galatasaray, hinting that the 2014 World Cup winner could return for the home match against Darmstadt on October 28. “He feels good, he has confidence,” he assured. Neuer, who won the 2013 and 2020 Champions League with Bayern, last played for his club on November 12, 2022 at his former team’s home ground, Schalke, in a 2-0 victory.
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The 37-year-old then captained Germany to their World Cup group stage elimination in Qatar, before fracturing his leg skiing on his return in December. “I have to say that I am incredibly proud of him for the way he handled his return,” Tuchel stressed, explaining that Neuer was already showing his “extraordinary qualities” in training. Besides Neuer, Serge Gnabry, Noussair Mazraoui and Dayot Upamecano will miss Saturday’s match against Mainz, while Joshua Kimmich’s eventual return “will be very tight”, with the midfielder recovering from an illness that forced him out prematurely the tour of the German selection to the United States. After seven days, Bayern Munich occupies third place in the standings, two points behind Bayer Leverkusen, first, and one point behind Stuttgart, second.
