FC Bayern Munchen News

The Frenchman missed last week’s trip to Frankfurt with a minor ankle injury but will be able to take his place on the pitch for Saturday’s Bavarian derby

Bayern Munich have confirmed that Franck Ribery will be available for his side’s home clash with Nurnberg on Saturday.

The French winger sat out the 1-0 away win against Eintracht Frankfurt last week and was forced to miss training earlier this week.

However, he has now recovered from his minor ankle injury and will be able to take his place on the field as the Bavarians chase a club-record 28th straight unbeaten Bundesliga game.

“The French winger resumed the squad programme on Thursday, completing the entire session without undue difficulty,” a club statement read.

“He is therefore available for Saturday’s Bavarian derby against Nuremberg.”

Meanwhile, Mario Gotze could be handed a competitive derby in the local derby clash following his €37 million move from Borussia Dortmund over the summer.

The 21-year-old missed all of pre-season with a muscle injury sustained playing for Jurgen Klopp’s men last term and did not rise from the bench at the Commerzbank Arena last week.

The experienced defender has hailed the German top flight and feels their performances in recent years have commanded respect across the continent

Bayern Munich defender Philipp Lahm has hailed the strength of the Bundesliga and believes German clubs are feared across Europe.

The Bavarians and Borussia Dortmund played out an all-German Champions League final in May and the 29-year-old feels the Bundesliga is one of the best leagues in the world.

“Our teams are feared across the continent and no-one wants to face them because of the Bundesliga’s strength,” Lahm was quoted as saying on the official Bundesliga website.

“The league’s as strong as ever. We had two teams in the Champions League final last season, and a good Bundesliga is a good advert for German football.

“There are other top leagues, but the Bundesliga is definitely up there.”

The Bundesliga currently sits third in the Uefa Country Ranking, behind La Liga and the Premier League, but ahead of Serie A.

Bayern Munich will look to break a club record 27 Bundesliga games without defeat when they contest the Bavarian derby with Nurnberg.

Mario Mandzukic scored the only goal of the game as Pep Guardiola’s men continued their 100 per cent winning start to the new league campaign at Eintracht Frankfurt last weekend.

That result also meant they drew level with their club record of 27 Bundesliga matches undefeated – and they can go beyond that figure by avoiding an upset against Nuremberg at the Allianz Arena on Saturday.

Bayern forward Thomas Muller says the squad know of their achievement, but insisted they are solely focused on the task of taking another three points.

“We’re obviously aware of it and we’re delighted, but the priority in Frankfurt was three points, which we were determined to take,” he told the club’s official website.

“We’ve generally done well at home to Nurnberg, and we obviously want that to continue. Nurnberg are very strong in the air and come with enormous presence.

“They play with great determination, so we have to resist that. We’re superior to them technically and tactically, but we have to show that on the field.”

Bayern have no fresh injury worries ahead of the game, but centre-back Holger Badstuber remains a long-term absentee after suffering a recurrence of a cruciate ligament tear in May.

Nurnberg have started their league campaign with consecutive 2-2 draws against Hoffenheim and Hertha Berlin respectively.

Michael Wiesinger’s side have shown fighting spirit in those fixtures, coming back from losing positions in both matches to take a share of the spoils.

However, they have issues in defence ahead of the game. Marcos Antonio is set to miss the whole campaign with a hyaline cartilage injury picked up in pre-season, while Per Nilsson is doubtful with a hamstring problem.

The Germany legend has backed the starlet to flourish at the Allianz Arena following his summer switch from Borussia Dortmund

Mario Gotze’s move to Bayern Munich will help him flourish into one of the world’s best players, according to Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

The Bayern CEO believes Gotze made the right choice in making the controversial €37 million summer switch from Borussia Dortmund, insisting the player is in the right surroundings to continue his development.

“He’s on the way to world stardom and will make this step at Bayern,” Rumenigge told reporters.

“He has the quality to continue to make us successful.”

Gotze has yet to make his official Bayern debut as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury, but Rummenigge believes die Roten are well placed to replicate last season’s historic success once the full squad is back to fitness.

“In addition to Gotze, we have Javi Martinez, Thiago and [Bastian] Schweinsteiger who are yet to reach their best condition, but when they do, Bayern will win with beautiful football,” he said.

The Bundesliga giants recently finalised Franck Ribery’s contract renewal, but want to see how things pan out under Pep Guardiola before opening talks with the quartet

Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has made it clear that the German giants have not planned any contract negotiations with David Alaba, Jerome Boateng, Toni Kroos and Arjen Robben for the foreseeable future.

The quartet all have contracts that are due to expire in the summer of 2015 and the Bavarians were expected to open renewal talks shortly after recently already tying down Franck Ribery to a new deal earlier this summer.
 
However, Rummenigge is in no rush to hold talks with Alaba, Boateng, Kroos and Robben as he wants to see how things develop under Pep Guardiola before making any long term decisions.

“We want to wait how things develop and then discuss the situation internally,” Rummenigge was quoted as saying by Kicker.

“Let’s not forget that all players still have two years to go on their current contract.”

Bayern are currently preparing for the Bundesliga match at home against Nurnberg. They won their first two league games of the season, beating Borussia Monchengladbach and Eintracht Frankfurt.