Bayern Munich will bench soccer star Serge Gnabry for the weekend’s game for disciplinary issues. Bayern’s manager confirmed the same in the latest press conference before Saturday’s Bundesliga game. Gnabry visited Paris last Sunday to attend Paris Fashion Week, which irked the club.
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Bayern has restarted the Bundesliga campaign with two consecutive draws after the World Cup break. The draws have opened up the title race. Bayern needs to get results in upcoming games to keep hold of the top position. Now, they will face Eintracht Frankfurt, currently fourth in the table and five points behind them, without in form Gnabry.
Bayern’s manager and Sporting Director unhappy at soccer star
Bayern played out a 1-1 draw at RB Leipzig last Saturday. Leipzig currently sits in second place, one point behind Bayern, having played one game extra. The club gave players a day off on Sunday before starting preparations for the mid-week game against FC Koln. Gnabry traveled to Paris that left the Sporting Director fuming.
Hasan Salihamidzic, Sporting Director of Bayern, labeled the act of Gnabry amateurish. ” It’s exactly what I don’t like. It’s not Bayern Munich to go messing around when you have a day off. A day off is meant to be for resting yourself so that you can push on in the next game,” said Salihamidzic, speaking to the German news agency DPA.
Serge Gnabry will not start Bayern's match against Frankfurt, Julian Nagelsmann said, after his fashion show trip to Paris last week. pic.twitter.com/XnWOIaB52S
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) January 27, 2023
However, Gnabry started for the club against FC Koln on Wednesday but was replaced at halftime with Kingsley Coman coming on. Bayern manager Julian Nagelsmann confirmed it was a strategic decision owing to his poor performance in the first half of the game.
The halftime substitution led to speculations of the Paris trip affecting the player’s performance. Nagelsmann at first defended the player, saying he can do anything he wants in his free time. But he took a U-turn on Friday, mentioning Kingsley Coman will start ahead of Gnabry on Saturday against Frankfurt. Bayern and Nagelsmann are under pressure to get the result after two consecutive draws.
Lothar Matthaus defends Gnabry over the Paris trip
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Former Bayern and German legend Matthaus defended the soccer star and asked the clubs to have clear guidelines. “If it’s not in my contract and I have a day off, I can do whatever I want. They should put in clearer guidelines,” said Matthaus while speaking to Sky Sports.
It will be interesting to see how Gnabry reacts to the whole situation when he next takes to the pitch for the club. Gnabry is in great form this season, netting eight goals and assisting four in the Bundesliga. Bayern is dropping the player when the team is struggling for results. They will hope to get all three points on Saturday amid the controversy around Gnabry.
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Is Bayern Munich right to drop the player to the bench for visiting Paris on the day off?