Bayern without De Ligt and Musiala against Stuttgart
Bayern Munich will be without defender Matthijs de Ligt and midfielder Jamal Musiala for the Bundesliga match against VfB Stuttgart on Saturday.
"Matthijs de Ligt won't be in the squad. The plan is that he returns to training on Sunday, then we've got three days. Jamal Musiala won't be in the squad tomorrow. Same procedure there," coach Thomas Tuchel said in a news conference on Friday.
De Ligt missed the Champions League semi-final game against Real Madrid on Tuesday due to a ligament injury in his knee. Musiala started the game, but has also been dealing with knee issues.
Tuchel added that winger Leroy Sané will travel with the team, while defender Dayot Upamecano is doubtful.
Bayern started against Madrid with Minjae Kim in defence, but he was responsible for two major mistakes that led to the two Madrid goals in the 2-2 draw.
Tuchel criticized the defender after the game, but said on Friday: "He'll continue to get our full support and has our backing. There's a good chance he'll play tomorrow."
"There are more ways to defend than always being greedy. He's someone who wants to defend in a very aggressive way. It's how he defines himself. The mistakes came from a good impetus," he added.
Bayern could probably rest some starters, since they already qualified for next season's Champions League and have no more concrete ambitions in the league.
Stuttgart also qualified to the top competition and were helped by keeper Alexander Nübel, who's on loan from Bayern.
"Alex is doing an excellent job. We're very pleased with how he's progressing and that he's so important. His performances are just as impressive as those of the Stuttgart team," Tuchel said.
