BERLIN, May 3. (dpa/EP) –
Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel confirmed this Friday that both Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt and German striker Jamal Musiala will not play this Saturday against Stuttgart in the Bundesliga, but that both are scheduled to return to the group on Sunday, so who could be part of the game for the clash against Real Madrid with a place in the Champions League final at stake.
“Matthijs de Ligt will not be in the squad. The plan is for him to return to training on Sunday and then we have three days. Jamal Musiala will not be in the squad either and it will be the same procedure,” Tuchel said this Friday at a press conference.
De Ligt missed the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals against Real Madrid due to a knee ligament injury, while Musiala started despite also having knee problems. Tuchel added that winger Leroy Sané will travel and that defender Dayot Upamecano is a doubt.
Bayern started last Tuesday against Real Madrid with the South Korean Minjae Kim in defense, but made two errors that led to the two Madrid goals. Tuchel criticized the center-back after this match, but this Friday he made it clear that he “will continue to have all the support” and that he has the “backing” of the entire team.
“There are more ways to defend than always being ambitious and he is someone who wants to defend in a very aggressive way. It is how he defines himself and the mistakes came from good momentum,” he added of the Asian soccer player’s performance.
On the other hand, the German coach assured that “the top priority” is the matches against Stuttgart and Real Madrid and not who will occupy the bench next year. “At the moment I am the coach. We have attractive tasks ahead of us, we want to reach the Champions League final, I am not worried about the future of FC Bayern,” he declared.
“We have a contract in force and we have agreed that we will terminate it sooner. Everything is always possible, but the answer is the same, the agreement remains,” he stated regarding the possibility that he could finally remain on the Bavarian bench.