Without the agreement of the club, the legendary German goalkeeper evokes all the subjects, from his serious injury to the ski to his World Cup in Qatar through his future in selection. But it was above all his words on the dismissal, at the end of January, of Toni Tapalovic, goalkeeping coach at the club since 2011, which made the headlines.
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Toni Tapalovic and Manuel Neuer
Credit: Getty Images
Again, the words are carefully chosen. “A blow while I was already on the ground“, “like my heart was ripped out“, “the most brutal thing i have experienced in my career“: Neuer takes the defense of his former companion and heavily criticizes the decision of his management. A way also to defend his backyard according to Florian Bogner, journalist for Eurosport Germany.
“Neuer has such a place at Bayern Munich that the whole team dedicated to goalkeepers was built for himhe summarizes. He and Tapalovic did their own thing and were almost untouchable. Sven Ulreich added but never had a misplaced word and seemed very happy to be number 2. This all worked as long as Neuer was still at the top level. But in recent years, as he got older, he had a few injuries and Bayern started to pay more attention to that.“.
Tapalovic et Neuer, a uni clan
Moreover, the recruitment of Alexander Nübel was supposed to allow a gradual takeover of the current doorman of Monaco. “The problem is that the leaders quickly realized that Nübel and Neuer were incompatible, like fire and ice.continue Florian Bogner. So they loaned Nübel to Monaco“.
Concern, Tapalovic, witness of Neuer’s marriage, does not take any news of the identified successor of Neuer during his loan. “I already think that we could have exchanged from time to time, on the situation, how it is going. But this is not the case“, Nübel complained to ZDF.
Alexander Nübel (right) and Manuel Neuer, in April 2021.
Credit: Getty Images
The status quo then prevailed. But the serious injury of the captain of Bayern during a day of skiing, on a track he has “descended an infinite number of times, even alone“, changed everything. Unavailable for the end of the season, with a major question mark over his ability to return to the highest level after such an injury at 36, Neuer saw Bayern take the bull by the horns.
“In reality, it is a combination of many thingsbelieves Bogner again. Bayern lost some faith in seeing Neuer be one of the best goalkeepers in the world in the coming years, Nagelsmann and Tapalovic didn’t have a great relationship, Tapalovic didn’t check in on Nübel at Monaco, Bayern decided to buy Sommer without consulting Neuer or Tapalovic before firing the latter. So Neuer felt betrayed and his response was this interview.“.
Bayern 2.0
“His stupid skiing injury weakened his popularity with fansBogner further informs us. Basically, Bayern have decided to interfere in Neuer’s affairs, in this state in the state, to challenge him but also to prepare for the possibility that he does not return to the highest level. Moreover, this challenge is also seen in the choice of Sommer. He probably would have preferred Ulreich sticking to it, like the times before.“.
Yann Sommer, Bayern Munich’s new goalkeeper
Credit: Getty Images
But things are changing, even in Bavaria. This political crisis has also further exposed the new strong men of this Bayern Munich 2.0. The gradual withdrawal of Uli Hoeness, never the last to shoot arrows, was therefore offset by the rise to the niche of Kahn, followed by Hasan Salihamidzic, sporting director. In the case, a man remained discreet.
Asked at a press conference on Sunday, Julian Nagelsmann refused to discuss the Neuer case, redirecting the debate to the search for a new captain. Between them, it’s a rather cold relationship if we interpret the words of the doorman: “OWe talk things over with Julian, we work together professionally. We are even very direct with each other. He knows what I stand for, what I represent. I fight for the well-being of the club and I will never be an obstacle. I am a team player but, as captain, I also have special responsibilities“.
Younger than the German goalkeeper, the technician probably wanted to avoid an unwelcome act of authority with a club legend when its leaders had already reacted. He may be young (35 years old), Nagelsmann learns quickly: at “FC Hollywood”, dramas are frequent and require a well-developed political sense.
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