Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany gestures on the sideline during the German DFB Cup semifinal soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich at BayArena. Federico Gambarini/dpa
Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany said that he could do changes in his team for the Bundesliga match against Mainz on Saturday in view of the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday.
Kompany stressed in a news conference on Friday that “the Mainz game is no warm-up but a Bundesliga fixture. We want all three points.”
Advertisement
However, he added: “It could be that there are changes as we manage workload. The important thing is that we’re ready to play our best. But if that doesn’t work because Mainz is a very tough away game, then we also need to be ready to fight.
“I want to field players who don’t need to be concerned about things because they’re fresh.”
Bayern already claimed the league title last weekend and on Wednesday defeated Bayer Leverkusen to reach the German Cup final for the first time since 2020.
Kompany said that he doesn’t blame his players if their minds are already on the PSG match.
Advertisement
“We’re all people. We had a similar situation a few weeks ago with the two Madrid games. They’re so big you can’t not think about them,” he said.
“But I can be a role model as coach. How do we prepare? What do I say? I can make good decisions to an extent, not ignore the big goal but also have no fear bringing fresh players in to push the fight.”
During the news conference, Bayern sporting director Christoph Freund denied recent reports that the club have reached an agreement to extend the contract of goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
“I’m hearing that for the first time. I don’t know where the information has come from. It’s mid-April. There’s been no talks with him yet. We’ll announce something when there’s something to announce,” Freund said.
