Musiala may be just fit enough to appear in the Nations League
In an ideal world for Bayern Munich, players would prioritize returning for their club over their country, not risk their fitness in international games and show up in the best possible shape for their club. But there is little chance that players will ever disregard a potential call up to represent their country, even when they are not 100% fit, and the same could very well be the case for Jamal Musiala. The Bavarian’s superstar has been out with a long term injury since April and is working towards a comeback. Clearly, he will not return for the end of the Bundesliga, but he may be fit enough to play in the FIFA Club World Cup.
There is a chance, however, that Musiala could focus on making his comeback in the Nations League semifinals for Germany, set just around a week before the Club World Cup. It would certainly be frustrating for Bayern if Musiala’s participation in the newly reworked tournament would be hindered by participating half-fit in the UEFA Nations League.
In the pre match press conference ahead of Bayern’s final Bundesliga match against TSG Hoffenheim, a reporter touched on that possibility and queried whether Bayern supported a desire to get fit for the international tournament. Head coach Vincent Kompany responded first: “We always support our players,” he stated, via @iMiaSanMia. “They also have the mentality to always want to play. We need to look at things medically. It wasn’t a simple injury. Obviously we always support our guys in playing for their national teams. We’ll discuss things in the coming weeks.”
Board member for sport Max Eberl added his own two cents: “Players want to play for their country,” he said, via @iMiaSanMia. “We’ll talk about what’s best. But first and foremost is that the guys are fit and healthy.”
Ugh. So many new tournaments, so many new injury worries. It is all getting out of hand.
