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Ribéry Could Face UEFA Ban
On top of a frustrating evening for the reigning UEFA Footballer of the Year, Franck Ribéry could be due punishment from UEFA after his slap of Daniel Carvajal. According to tz-online, UEFA is waiting for the referees' match report of Bayern München's match against Real Madrid before taking action.
Ribéry and Carvajal tussled a great amount on the left flank, the Spaniard able to keep the Frenchman at bay for most of the match. A punishment could suspend Ribéry from UEFA competition starting next season.
Injured Quartet Practice, Inch Closer to Return
Naturally Pep Guardiola elected to give his players a day off from training following their Champions League match on Tuesday, but that does not mean players did not train.
Thiago Alcantara (knee), Xherdan Shaqiri (thigh), Holger Badstuber (knee), and Julian Green (shoulder) all practiced on Wednesday. Trainers Lorenzo Buenaventura and Thomas Wilhelmi took Thiago and Green through running and gym exercises while Shaqiri did some laps around the complex. Badstuber "slaved away" with coach Andreas Kornmeyer, working on his comeback.
Mario Götze, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, Mitchell Weiser, and Leopold Zingerle all trained on the ball as well. Guardiola named Götze and Højbjerg to Tuesday's team sheet but neither played.
Dreesen: "We will reach deep into our pockets as necessary"
The season is not over, but Bayern are addressing the impending questions for next season nonetheless. Jan-Christian Dreesen, Bayern's finance chief, believes that the process to improve the squad will commence soon with May upon them.
"We will intensively talk about the plans for the coming season in the coming weeks," Dreesen told Sport Bild. "Sporting quality will advance. We were in a position to invest in quality in the past. We are now also. We will reach deep into our pockets as necessary. We are well set up and can fulfill Pep Guardiola's wishes – if he has some."
Bayern are allegedly linked most recently to Athetic Bilbao's Aymeric Laporte and AS Roma's Mehdi Benatia, both central defenders that will cost a pretty euro. Defense is the area where most of the rumors involving Bayern lie, a weakness which Real Madrid exacerbated in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League Semifinal.
Bayern have already completed two summer transfers, Robert Lewandowski and Sebastian Rode signing on free transfers in January and April respectively. Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has expressed his desire to keep both Lewandowski and Mario Mandžukić in Guardiola's squad, but former manager Ottmar Hitzfeld has doubts the dynamic will work.
"I am fascinated myself how Guardiola plans next season. Playing with two strikers does not correspond to his philosophy," said Hitzfeld. "If at all, he plays with one and a half strikers, rather with one or a false nine. They are important conversations that the club most induce in the summer."