Bayern Munich will punish Manuel Neuer, but only after facing PSG

According to a report by Bild (paywalled), Manuel Neuer may escape the fallout from his interview for a little while longer. Bayern Munich will hold off on meeting with the club captain until after the first leg vs Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League next week. Neuer, who gave an interview criticizing the club for sacking his friend and longtime goalkeeping coach Toni Tapalovic.

Per Bild, the rationale right now is to prevent distractions before one of the biggest games of the season. They want the team and Julian Nagelsmann to prepare for the knockout game in a calm environment. How much of that will be possible remains to be seen, as this story has already been picked up and turned into a major scandal by the media. There are discussions about stripping the captaincy from Neuer in favor of Joshua Kimmich, and Bayern president Herbert Hainer was even asked about the possibility of a contract termination (which he denied).

The players will doubtless be watching the situation unfold with great interest. Even if you expect them to act with professionalism at a time like this, rumors about internal squad politics will always create a distraction in the dressing room. Hopefully, Julian Nagelsmann can corral his troops away from the headlines and towards the most important goal of the season — winning trophies.