Bayern Munich are preparing for the weekend without their head coach. Vincent Kompany collapsed on Friday while he was watching the club’s reserve side train, was treated on site by emergency medics and then taken to a Munich hospital for tests.
The club confirmed the episode in an evening statement, saying the 40-year-old Belgian would be checked over thoroughly and kept under doctors’ supervision for now. Until he is back, his assistants are in charge of the sessions and of the team on matchday. Reports in Germany described him as stable. A rescue helicopter touched down at the training complex, but Kompany was driven to hospital by road.
The warning signs had been visible for days. Kompany has been fighting a virus for roughly a week and looked pale after the 6-0 thrashing of Leipzig. He skipped Tuesday’s media briefing before the Champions League meeting with Arsenal, sending assistant Aaron Danks instead, yet he still stood on the touchline in heavy rain for Wednesday’s 2-2 draw. Afterwards he admitted he had ignored his body until it finally told him that “enough is enough”.
Max Eberl, Bayern’s board member for sport, put the coach’s wellbeing above everything else and promised he would be given as long as it takes to recover, with no pressure to hurry back. The former Manchester City captain has the full confidence of the board, and so does the staff now stepping in for him, Eberl added.
Next up for the Bundesliga leaders is a trip to Freiburg. The club has not said who will take charge on the bench there. For a squad that has thrived under Kompany’s demanding, attacking approach, it is an unexpected test; for the coach himself, it is a forced lesson in taking rest seriously.
