The German football team, Bayern Munich, overcame what some described as a small crisis, after achieving a landslide victory over Leipzig 6-1, and now turns its attention to the upcoming confrontation against Arsenal, next Wednesday, in the Champions League.
Luis Diaz led the Bavarian team to victory by scoring three goals and assisting another goal, while Harry Kane scored his 102nd goal in the German League during his centenary match in the competition, so Bayern achieved a strong uprising after drawing 2-2 with Augsburg and 3-3 against Viking Stavanger.
The big win also gave an important boost to coach Vincent Kompany, who watched the entire match from the bench, while his assistant Aaron Danks directed the players from the technical area.
Max Eberl, a member of Bayern's board of directors for sports affairs, said that Kompany suffered from a viral infection throughout the week, and also had difficulty moving due to a problem with his hip joint.
Eberle added, “He doesn’t feel really well,” and stressed that the coach “will definitely be present” in Wednesday’s match, although his role during it is still unclear.
Despite his suffering, Kompany was able to get on the field and embrace Diaz, who regained his sparkle at the right time after a difficult start to the season, thanks to his hat-trick against Leipzig.
Midfielder Joshua Kimmich said: “I am very happy for Lucho, he really deserves it.”
He added: “He missed some opportunities at the beginning of the season, but he produced amazing numbers for us last season. “He had a great game today, and he was definitely the star of the night.”
Diaz will need to continue his brilliance next Wednesday, when he and Harry Kane must lead Bayern's attack in the absence of Michael Oliseh, who scored one goal and made another against Leipzig, but will miss the match against Arsenal due to suspension, after being sent off in the Vikings match.
Eberle said that goalkeeper Manuel Neuer's participation against Arsenal is still uncertain, after he missed the last two matches due to a foot problem.
Eberl said after the match: “It is not a serious injury, there is just some fluid accumulated in the foot, and there is nothing to worry about.” "He was not ready enough to participate today, and we will see if he will be able to play on Wednesday."
It is expected that Jonas Orbig will take his place again if his absence continues, as the 23-year-old goalkeeper confirmed his willingness to participate.
Orbig (23 years old) said: “Everyone is ready to participate.” I hope Manu gets back to his fitness quickly, that much is clear. If the team needs me, I am ready.”
Orbig did not face many tests against Leipzig, who presented a disappointing performance, but conceded a goal in stoppage time scored by Andrea Maksimovic.
Eberle also indicated that Jamal Musiala is close to returning after suffering a torn muscle fiber, but he will likely not be ready to participate against Arsenal on Wednesday.
Bayern will face Arsenal based on its strong results at home, after beating Stuttgart 5-1, Union Berlin 7-0, and Leipzig 6-1 in the German League, and also beating Norwegian Bodo Glimt 5-0 in the Champions League.
Arsenal, the English Premier League champion and Champions League runner-up, defeated Bayern 3-1 in London 11 months ago, in the league stage of the competition.
But the English team's last victory in Munich dates back to 2013, and it will be difficult for them to ignore the strong performance presented by Bayern on Saturday.
Kimmich said: “The team’s performance in the first 60 minutes was on a completely different level.”
Kane added: “It was important to send a strong message, and we did that from the first minute.”
Today, Sunday, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina ended Rafael Khodar's brilliant career in the Shanghai Masters Tennis Championship when he came back from losing the first set to defeat his Spanish compatriot 1-6, 7-6, 6-4 to win the biggest title of his career.
At the age of 27, Davidovich won his first title in the Masters tournament, which is the most important in his professional career. “I don't know what to say,” Davidovich said. I don't know what to feel. "It's just a huge relief."
He added during the cup handover ceremony: “This will be a memory for the rest of my life.”
He also praised his rival, saying: “You are 20 years old, but you have a future ahead of you.” "She will be here many times."
The Malaga-born player earlier this year won his first two ATP titles, in Mallorca on grass and Chengdu on hard courts, but he had never won a 1,000-point Masters title before Shanghai.
As for Khodar, who is 20 years old, he missed the opportunity to enter the top ten in the world for the first time. He also missed the opportunity to overtake three competitors in the race to qualify for the final ATP tournament of the season, scheduled to be held in Turin from 15 to 22 November.
Khodar will maintain ninth place in the “qualification race,” which is the seasonal classification that determines the eight players who qualify for the final tournament, behind Russian Daniil Medvedev, American Frances Tiafoe, and Frenchman Arthur Vis.
Khodar, who hails from Madrid and had previously won his first title last April in Marrakesh (250 points) on clay courts, clearly outperformed his opponent in the first set, and seemed on his way to achieving his first title in the 1,000-point Masters tournament after he broke Davidovich’s serve to lead 3-2 in the second set.
But Davidovich, who had eliminated German Alexander Zverev, ranked second in the world, who will advance to the top at the end of this season, in the semi-finals, succeeded in returning the break directly, and maintained his serve games for the rest of the set, despite Khodar having several opportunities to break serve again.
In the tie break, Khodar was the first to commit a mistake, as he played a hasty forehand (four-hand) and the score indicated a 5-5 tie. This was followed by a strong and decisive serve from Davidovich, which enabled him to equalize the score and win the second set.
As for the decisive set, it began with an exchange of breaks between the two players. At 2-2, Davidovich once again succeeded in breaking his younger opponent's serve, and this time maintained his advantage to move towards victory.
