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Manuel Neuer and Julian Nagelsmann
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IMAGO/Mladen Lackovic / IMAGO/Lackovic
Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann commented on the critical interview with Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
'I wouldn't have given it.
Especially when you can also read in the same that the club is in the foreground.
Of course, that doesn't help calm things down," Nagelsmann told the broadcaster "DAZN".
He is a person in need of harmony, his door is never closed.
In an interview with the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" and "The Athletic", Neuer verbally attacked the record champions' club leadership for the separation from goalkeeping coach Toni Tapalovic.
That was “the most blatant” thing he had experienced in his career, said the newcomer who had been missing for a long time with a broken leg.
»For me it was a blow when I was already on the ground.
I felt like my heart was being ripped out.«
After the interview, Nagelsmann said he had not yet had any contact with Neuer.
But he had “a very good conversation with Manu and those responsible in private with Manu, well before the interview”.
That's when the decision was discussed and explained.
Nagelsmann said he was convinced his path was the right one.
When asked about Neuer's future as captain at Bayern, Nagelsmann did not give a clear statement.
»Manuel should get well, Manuel should get fit again.
He should be able to enjoy football again.
He has a small, easy phase.« In general, he has often emphasized that Neuer is the best goalkeeper in the world.
"I hope he comes back healthy."
Bayern's CEO Oliver Kahn and sports director Hasan Salihamidžić had previously criticized Neuer.
He expected something different from him as captain, Salihamidžić said in an interview with "Bild am Sonntag".
Kahn had previously said: "What Manuel said in parts of these two interviews in connection with Toni Tapalović's release does neither do justice to him as captain nor to the values of FC Bayern.
In addition, his statements come at the wrong time because we are facing very important games."
After the disappointing first-round elimination at the World Championships in Qatar, Neuer had a skiing accident, the consequences of which made him absent for the rest of the season.
As a replacement, the club had taken Yann Sommer as an experienced keeper and Swiss national goalkeeper for around eight million euros.
After his return, Neuer will have to face an unfamiliar competition.
bka/sid/dpa