Bavarian Football Works - Bayern Munich in the October International Break: Live Stream, TV Schedule and Team NewsManufacturing goals in the German tradition, for domestic consumption and for export.https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47275/bavarian-fave.png2015-10-15T02:08:47+02:00http://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/rss/stream/92411562015-10-15T02:08:47+02:002015-10-15T02:08:47+02:00Three Bayern players honored by UEFA
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<figcaption>Adam Nurkiewicz/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Three players representing three different countries were named to UEFA's All Star XI side.</p> <p>Now that Europe's long qualifying campaign for the 2016 European Championship has come to a conclusion, UEFA has named their <a href="http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/qualifiers/news/newsid=2293058.html">Best XI</a> and <a href="http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/qualifiers/news/newsid=2293656.html#the+best+uefa+euro+2016+qualifying">awards </a>for the campaign. As one would expect, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/">Bayern Munich</a> is represented on the list.</p>
<p><span>Robert Lewandowski</span> was named the best player in qualifying after tying the record for goals scored. The Poland international has been on fire during the first half of the season, banging in goals for club and country alike. Lewandowski tied the European Championship Qualifying goal scoring record with 13 goals. He equaled the record set by Northern Ireland's David Healy in qualification for Euro 2008. The only difference is that Lewandowski did it in two fewer games.</p>
<p>Three Bayern Munich players were named the the Best XI. Lewandowski was joined by Germany's Thomas Müller and Austria's <span>David Alaba</span>. All three, of course, have aided their countries in qualifying for France 2016.</p>
<h4>UEFA European Qualifiers All Star XI</h4>
<p><b>Forwards:</b><span><b> </b><span>Gareth Bale (Wales), Robert Lewandowski (Poland), Thomas Müller (Germany)</span></span></p>
<p><b>Midfielders:</b> David Alaba (Austria), Steven Davis (Northern Ireland), Gylfi Sigurdsson (Iceland)</p>
<p><b>Defenders: </b>Razvan Rat (Romania), Gary Cahill (England), Ashley Williams (Wales), Matteo Darmian (Italy)</p>
<p><b>Goalkeeper: </b>Thibaut Courtois (Belgium)</p>
<p><b>Substitutes: </b>Ciprian Tatarusanu (Romania), Jordi Alba (Spain), Kamil Glik (Poland), Marek Hamsik (Slovakia), Ivan Perisic (Croatia), Kevin de Bruyne (Begium), Artem Dzyuba (Russia)</p>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/15/9535057/three-bayern-munich-players-named-to-uefas-euro-2016-all-star-xiPhillip Quinn2015-10-14T12:00:02+02:002015-10-14T12:00:02+02:00Top 3 Performers in the International Break
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<figcaption>Mark Runnacles/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Lewandowski keeps his roll going, while Vidal gutted out two important performances in World Cup qualifying.</p> <p>A lot of drama ensued over the international break, most of it coming in the final matches of qualifying for the UEFA European Championship. The drama didn't stop there though, for no one probably expected Brazil and Argentina to both lose their first <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fifa-womens-world-cup" class="sbn-auto-link">World Cup</a> qualifying matches.</p>
<p>Wherever the drama took place, <a href="https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Bayern Munich</a> players were a big part of it. Group D had most of the action of course, Germany and Poland hanging on to finish first and second despite dropping more points than they would have liked. The international break also saw Arturo Vidal and Douglas Costa square off for the first time as teammates, and Joshua Kimmich made an even stronger case to his first team organizers.</p>
<p>Here are the top performances from the international break, as well as the other occurrences that transpired involving Bayern's best stars.</p>
<h4>Top Performers</h4>
<h5>1. <span>Robert Lewandowski</span>, Poland</h5>
<p>No goals had more magnitude in this last round of qualifying than Lewandowski's. He was not just scoring goals, but was scoring goals when he needed to score goals. His movement was on point, his finishing was emphatic, and the attention he commanded helped unlock a stingy Republic of Ireland defense. This man is lighting up the football world, and it does not matter what crest is on his chest.</p>
<h5>2. <span>Arturo Vidal</span>, Chile</h5>
<p>There may be questions on whether he should have played or not, but no one can fault his efforts when he was on the field. Watching Chile dominate in midfield, and one can see why Jorge Sampaoli did not keep Vidal on the bench. As he has done at the club level for years, he was doing everything in midfield for his country: directing the play, making late runs, hunting down dribblers, and unleashing challenging shots. Oh, and <a href="http://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/9/9484751/arturo-vidal-alexis-sanchez-complete-give-and-go-for-chiles-second/in/9241156">the give-and-go he had with Alexis Sanchez</a> was pretty fun to watch too.</p>
<h5>3. <span>Manuel Neuer</span>, Germany</h5>
<p>His chances to shine did not come very often with Germany's possession, but he showed up many of the times he needed to. Only two goals went into his net, one coming from a well-executed counterattack form the Republic of Ireland's Shane Long and the other on a fire cracking volley from Georgia's Jab Kankava. He was the true last line of defense in many of the saves he made, ensuring Germany stayed in each match they struggled to extract points from. Germany has several issues they have to iron out before the Euros, but Neuer showed he was not one of them.</p>
<h4>Honorable Mentions</h4>
<h5>
<span>Joshua Kimmich</span>, Germany U21</h5>
<p>The caveat of the U21 level may apply here, but that should not take away from the outstanding week he had with the DFB-Junioren. He excelled in the high playmaking role Horst Hrubesch thrust him in against Finland, <a href="http://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/9/9487833/joshua-kimmich-scores-2nd-goal-for-germany-u21-in-qualifying/in/9241156">even getting on the scoresheet</a>. He returned to the deep-lying commander against the Faroe Islands, and watched as his compatriots put six goals past the small island nation. Kimmich showed how versatile of a midfielder he can be, an attribute bound to increase his chances at playing time.</p>
<h5>
<span>Thiago Alcântara</span>, Spain</h5>
<p>His return to the national team was not as big of a deal as Diego Costa's exclusion from it, and his stud performance came in a match that did not matter. Nonetheless, Thiago deserves praise for the showing he put in against Ukraine, especially since he was combining with players he has never played with before. In a side filled with fantastic playmakers, his combinations and passing was a step above. Unfortunately reckless challenges and a tackle that could have lead to a second yellow card removes him from the list.</p>
<h5>
<span>Thomas Müller</span>, Germany</h5>
<p>Needing to execute more of a playmaking role for Die Mannschaft, Müller did what he could to facilitate Germany's attack. It was not his fault <span>Marco Reus</span>, Mesut Özil, and Ilkay Gundogan did not finish off the chances he created for them. He did have a goal from the penalty spot to reward his efforts in the international break, but his time with Germany could have looked much better if his compatriots did a better job finding the target.</p>
<h4>The Rest</h4>
<p>The biggest storyline of this international break was Bayern's continued injury misfortune. Both Mario Gotze and <span>Kingsley Coman</span> had to depart their respective qualifiers with muscle injuries, leaving Bayern thin in the wing position once again. Götze will hope to regain full fitness during the <i>Winterpause</i> in January, but fortunately Coman's injury is not expected to keep him out for too long.</p>
<p>The other injury scare came from <span>Douglas Costa</span>, who had some scary collisions with Chile's Francisco Silva and Venezuela's Tomás Rincon. Both times he was able to walk it off, even though he looked a little gimpy doing so. He certainly was able to recover, for he was only substituted once in both of the qualifiers he played. He also stayed on long enough to <a href="http://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/14/9528523/douglas-costa-finds-ricardo-oliveira-for-brazils-third-goal/in/9241156">pick out Ricardo Oliveira</a> on another sharp delivery.</p>
<p><span>Jérôme Boateng</span> played both of Germany's games, though his performances were not of the "standout" variety. He came forward at the right times, and even had four shots in the two matches to show for it. He could not recover in time to stop Long from getting the breakthrough goal for the Republic of Ireland, but he was trying to put out the flames <span>Mats Hummels</span> ignited when he got torched. Boateng used this international break to reestablish his standing as Germany's most important defender.</p>
<p>The man with the least amount of qualifying pressure was <span>David Alaba</span>, who played 155 minutes for Marcel Koller and Austria. He sat deeper in possession than he usually does with Austria, letting Martin Harnik and Marko Arnautović drive the play forward from the flanks. He was there to switch the play and help Julian Baumgartlinger shield the back four.</p>
<p>The Bayern players will slowly return to team training over the next few days, some having to recover from the injuries they suffered in the international break. The team will form up to prepare to travel to Bremen on Saturday.</p>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/14/9485577/top-bayern-munich-performances-from-the-international-breakDavis VanOpdorp2015-10-14T04:45:20+02:002015-10-14T04:45:20+02:00Douglas Costa Finds Ricardo Oliveira for Brazil's Third Goal<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/BavarianFBWorks/status/654124245237239808">Douglas Costa Finds Ricardo Oliveira for Brazil's Third&nbsp;Goal</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>Brazil had an uninspiring performance against Venezuela in their second CONMEBOL World Cup qualifier, but Douglas Costa was able to electrify the side late in the match with a tasty delivery to Ricardo Oliveira.</p></p></div>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/14/9528523/douglas-costa-finds-ricardo-oliveira-for-brazils-third-goalDavis VanOpdorp2015-10-14T04:06:38+02:002015-10-14T04:06:38+02:00Arturo Vidal Starts for Chile Despite Knee Issues<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/LaRoja/status/654114514452000768">Arturo Vidal Starts for Chile Despite Knee&nbsp;Issues</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>For all the public knows he may be hopped up on painkillers, but Arturo Vidal is starting for Chile in their CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifier against Peru.</p></p></div>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/14/9528381/arturo-vidal-starts-for-chile-despite-knee-issuesDavis VanOpdorp2015-10-14T02:17:48+02:002015-10-14T02:17:48+02:00Douglas Costa Starts for Brazil in Their CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifier<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/CBF_Futebol/status/654080592628346880">Douglas Costa Starts for Brazil in Their CONMEBOL World Cup&nbsp;Qualifier</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>Needing a victory to kick off Brazil's CONMEBOL qualifying campaign, Dunga will once again rely on Douglas Costa to make it happen.</p></p></div>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/14/9527231/douglas-costa-starts-for-brazil-in-their-conmebol-world-cup-qualifierDavis VanOpdorp2015-10-13T17:30:30+02:002015-10-13T17:30:30+02:00Joshua Kimmich Starts in the Heart of Midfield for Germany U21<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/DFB_Junioren/status/653952904248885248">Joshua Kimmich Starts in the Heart of Midfield for Germany&nbsp;U21</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>Horst Hrubesch placed Julian Weigl in the center of the park against Finland, but now it is Joshua Kimmich's turn to be the deep-lying orchestrator.</p></p></div>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/13/9520719/joshua-kimmich-starts-in-the-heart-of-midfield-for-germany-u21Davis VanOpdorp2015-10-13T16:46:13+02:002015-10-13T16:46:13+02:00Kingsley Coman injury update: No big deal!
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<figcaption>Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>FC Bayern Munich has been riddled with injuries in and around the current international break, with multiple national team players picking up knocks of varying severities, but at least one bit of news today is positive: French phenom Kingsley Coman's injury is very minor.</p> <p><span>Pep Guardiola</span> has repeatedly pointed out in the last few weeks that Bayern is working with only about 14 to 15 healthy players, and the news didn't get much better over the international break.</p>
<p>The list of Bayern injuries is already considerable, especially considering how early it is in the season. On top of the long-term injured players like <span>Holger Badstuber</span>, <span>Jan Kirchhoff</span> and <span>Franck Ribery</span>, die Roten had also lost Mehdi Benatia and <span>Arjen Robben</span> in the last weeks and months, and have had to deal with players like <span>Juan Bernat</span> (adductors) and <span>Sebastian Rode</span> (thigh) limping around and not being available for training or games. To make matters worse, <span>Mario Gotze</span> was <a target="_blank" href="http://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/9/9487335/mario-gotze-could-miss-up-to-three-months-with-groin-injury">diagnosed with a serious adductor issue</a>, picked up in the game against Ireland, and is expected to be out for up to three months.</p>
<p>A day later, the next piece of bad news: While on France U-21 duty, Kinglsey Coman <a target="_blank" href="http://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/10/9493289/kingsley-coman-leaves-france-u21-match-with-possible-injury">had to be taken out of the game</a> against Scotland, and before the youngster had even had a comprehensive medical examination, rumors were starting to fly that he might be out for six months.</p>
<p>Well, Bayern's official website gave <a target="_blank" href="http://www.fcbayern.de/de/news/news/2015/keine-schwerwiegende-verletzung-bei-kingsley-coman-131015.php">the all-clear today</a>: Coman has a minor thigh muscle issue, and won't be out for long. There is even a possibility of the Frenchman being available for Saturday's game against <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/bundesliga/teams/werder-bremen" class="sbn-auto-link">Werder Bremen</a>, although resting him would probably be the more prudent approach.</p>
<p>In other injury updates, Holger Badstuber was seen doing full sprints on today's off day, and is reportedly close to rejoining the team practice after a five month layoff, while Jan Kirchhoff (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/12/9511349/jan-kirchhoff-rejoins-full-team-practice-juan-bernat-returns-to-ball">who rejoined training yesterday</a>) and Arjen Robben did some light running today after already participating in team training earlier this week. Juan Bernat was also back on the field, training with a ball.</p>
<p>The good news is certainly welcome, considering the heavy schedule that is upcoming, with midweek games in Champions League and DFB-Pokal on the docket, along with the weekly grind of Bundesliga.</p>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/13/9518855/kingsley-coman-injury-update-no-big-dealgrudnik2015-10-12T21:15:31+02:002015-10-12T21:15:31+02:00Thiago Alcântara Picks Out Mario Gaspar for Spain's Opening Goal<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/BavarianFBWorks/status/653648914067890177">Thiago Alcântara Picks Out Mario Gaspar for Spain's Opening&nbsp;Goal</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>In just his second start for the Spain national team, Thiago Alcântara took advantage of the acreage near the goal line to pick out the far post run of Mario Gaspar.</p></p></div>
https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2015/10/12/9512281/thiago-alcantara-picks-out-mario-gaspar-for-spains-opening-goalDavis VanOpdorp