Bayern Munich vs Wolfsburg: Lineups, team news, Leon Goretzka injured, midfield problems, and more!

The Champions League is over but the midweek fixtures continue. Bayern Munich host Wolfsburg this week in a game that the team really needs to win. With only a since league win since the league restarted, Hansi Flick and his boys cannot afford any more dropped points before Saturday’s top of the table clash with Bayer Leverkusen.

Team news

Some good and bad news. Joshua Kimmich is back in partial team training, but won’t be available until Saturday at the earliest. Leon Goretzka, meanwhile, is sidelined for tomorrow’s game, leaving Bayern very thin in midfield. Tanguy Nianzou and Javi Martinez are unfortunately still injured. Niklas Sule is back though, and Lucas Hernandez may finally be at a good level of fitness to return to the lineup. Having them around would bolster Bayern’s defense immensely.

So what about the actual XI? Well, you can’t go wrong with Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller, neither of whom the coach has any intention of benching. Since Kingsley Coman and Leroy Sane started against Union Berlin, maybe Flick plans to put Douglas Costa and Serge Gnabry out there tomorrow for rotation. Or maybe he’ll give Jamal Musiala a start on the wing? Who knows — I’m not Hansi Flick.

In midfield, the coach was coy about who he’d choose in the lineup. This clearly means that Manuel Neuer is set to make his outfield debut, four years after Pep Guardiola tried to do the same but was stopped by Rummenigge. If KHR plays spoilsport once again, Hansi may be forced to put a dual pivot of Corentin Tolisso and Marc Roca out there as a plan B. We’ll know it when we see it.

Finally, the defense. Alphonso Davies will probably be rested for the returning Lucas Hernandez, while Niklas Sule (if fit) can probably come in for Jerome Boateng. David Alaba and Benjamin Pavard round out the backline for Bayern, which really needs to start getting its act together.

So without further ado, here’s what tomorrow’s lineup could look like:

Other options:

• Jamal Musiala in for either winger.
• Alphonso Davies in for David Alaba, Lucas to CB.
• Alex Nubel in, Neuer moves to midfield.