MUNICH: The Club World Cup may have hampered some clubs’ pre-season preparations but for Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany the month-long tournament helped with a quick and seamless integration of new signings.
The Bavarians had new arrivals Jonathan Tah and Tom Bischof in the squad for the June 14 to July 13 tournament in the United States, where they were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Paris St. Germain.
Several teams, including Borussia Dortmund, have said they felt the impact of a shorter-than-usual pre-season training period because of their participation in the Club World Cup.
The tournament left several top European teams with only four weeks to rest and prepare for the new season. Most top European leagues usually end in late May.
“The Club World Cup certainly helped in the integration of newcomers,” Kompany told a press conference on Friday ahead of Saturday’s league game at Hoffenheim.
“There is this feeling that players like Jonathan Tah and Tom Bischof have been here longer (than they have been).
“Maybe it has to do with the fact that we were living together for an entire month.
“We don’t really know how the Club World Cup will influence the season but we stayed together for a month and that is rare for a club. If we can use that then we will,” he added.
Whatever influence it may have had the champions have hit the ground running, winning all their domestic and European matches and topping the Bundesliga with nine points after three games.
They made a winning start in the Champions League after forward Harry Kane scored once in either half to guide Bayern to a 3-1 victory over Chelsea in their league phase opener on Wednesday.
“But to grow more together we have to win against Hoffenheim,” Kompany said. “We are playing well, scoring goals and have worked hard to deserve this momentum. We have to keep working in order to maintain this momentum.”
Club World Cup helped new Bayern players integrate quickly, says Kompany
https://arab.news/6gdcp
Club World Cup helped new Bayern players integrate quickly, says Kompany
- “The Club World Cup certainly helped in the integration of newcomers,” Kompany told a press conference
- “There is this feeling that players like Jonathan Tah and Tom Bischof have been here longer”
Morocco part company with coach Regragui as World Cup looms
RABAT: Morocco parted company with coach Walid Regragui on Thursday, three months before the World Cup, with the country’s football federation naming Mohamed Ouahbi as his replacement.
Regragui leaves despite having led the Atlas Lions to the World Cup semifinals in 2022 and to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations at the beginning of this year.
“I leave my post with loyalty, gratitude, and the certainty that I have served my country,” he declared during a ceremony broadcast live on television, confirming weeks of persistent rumors that he was on his way out.
Ouahbi, 49, is promoted to the role having overseen Morocco’s triumph at the Under-20 World Cup in October, with the federation describing the move as “a strategic transition” in the run-up to the World Cup in North America in June and July.
“It’s a desire not to waste time and to take a different direction,” a source close to the Moroccan Federation told AFP.
“By appointing Mohamed Ouahbi and welcoming top-tier reinforcements, we are raising our standards and our demands,” the source said.
Morocco will be in Group C at the World Cup along with five-time winners Brazil, Scotland and Haiti.
They begin their campaign against Brazil at the MetLife Stadium just outside New York City on June 13 and will be hoping to make a big impression at the tournament before co-hosting the 2030 edition with Spain and Portugal.
“Our ambition is to consolidate our place among the best nations in a sustainable way and to perform well from this summer, as well as in 2030,” the leader of the Moroccan federation, Fouzi Lekjaa, said recently.
Regragui was hailed in 2022 after Morocco became the first African nation in World Cup history to reach the semifinals, beating Spain and Portugal along the way.
However, Regragui likely paid the ultimate price for the manner in which Morocco lost the recent AFCON final to Senegal.
His team were beaten 1-0 after extra-time at the end of a match marred by the Senegal team’s decision to walk off the pitch in protest at the award of a controversial late penalty to the hosts.
The penalty award with the game goalless sparked trouble in the crowd involving Senegal fans, 18 of whom were jailed following the disruption.
Real Madrid star Brahim Diaz eventually took the penalty after a long delay but his kick was saved and Senegal went on to win the game.
