Bayern Munich will not have Vincent Kompany on the sidelines for several weeks after he collapsed on the training ground, though sporting director Max Eberl says the head coach will be with the squad in spirit.
Kompany may miss 'weeks' after training ground collapse, says Bayern director Eberl
Vincent Kompany collapsed during a Bayern Munich training session on Friday and will not be on the sidelines at Freiburg this weekend.
On Friday, as Bayern stepped up their preparations for Sunday's Bundesliga trip to Freiburg, Kompany collapsed during a training session.
It was subsequently confirmed that the former Manchester City and Belgium centre-back was stable and undergoing tests in hospital, with his assistant Aaron Danks set to take the reins this weekend.
And Eberl, who decided against asking for Sunday's game to be postponed, says Kompany will be given as long as it takes to make a full recovery.
"The good news is he's stable, and we've spoken," Eberl said. "It wasn't a pleasant moment for any of us.
"He's in the hospital and will stay for a few days until everything has been checked out. This just goes to show that health is the most important thing in life—not football.
"We at Bayern Munich are all in this together. The most important thing is finding the cause. He shouldn't come back until he's fit – we have to protect him. He is in the best hands.
"Vinnie will be given all the time he needs; we're not setting any timeframes. We need to figure out what it is. Then we can calmly consider what the recovery time means.
"We're not talking about days, but weeks – everyone should be clear about that.
"The coaching staff isn't considering changing anything. They all have Vinnie's spirit with them. That's how we’ll approach the next few weeks."
Bayern, who drew 2-2 with Arsenal in the Champions League in midweek, have 14 points on the board after six Bundesliga games and entered matchday seven top of the table.
Hosts Freiburg are third, just one point worse off, after losing 2-1 to Bayer Leverkusen last weekend. They then went down 3-0 to Monaco in the Europa League on Thursday.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Freiburg – Yuito Suzuki
Suzuki, who is Freiburg's leading Bundesliga scorer this season with four goals, is available again after serving a red card suspension.
Among all players with at least four Bundesliga goals this term, he has the best shot conversion rate (50%), while Bayern's Harry Kane has the lowest among that group (14%).
Bayern Munich – Harry Kane
Kane – who will discover on Monday whether he has won the Ballon d'Or – is the joint-leading assist provider in the Bundesliga this campaign with five, level with Werder Bremen's Marco Grull.
That means he has already equalled his total from the entire previous Bundesliga season (in 31 games), and, for the first time, Kane has provided multiple assists in two consecutive Bundesliga games (two each against Augsburg and RB Leipzig).
MATCH PREDICTION – BAYERN MUNICH WIN
Freiburg have only won one of their last 21 matches in all competitions against Bayern (W1 D4 L16), managing a 2-1 victory in the DFB-Pokal quarter-finals in April 2023.
In the Bundesliga, Freiburg are winless in their last 20 meetings with Bayern (D4 L16), with their last victory being a 2-1 home success in May 2015.
Freiburg have also lost their last eight Bundesliga games against teams who started the matchday top of the Bundesliga table – the longest ongoing losing streak of any club.
Freiburg have won their first three home games of a Bundesliga season for only the second time after 2016-17, when they won their first four, so they should not be expected to roll over without a fight.
Bayern's five points from three away Bundesliga games this term are their fewest at this stage of a season since 2014-15 (also five), but they should still have too much quality for their hosts, with the Opta supercomputer making them clear favourites.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Freiburg – 15.8%
Bayern Munich – 66.2%
Draw – 18%
