Kompany yet to decide on Dier and Upamecano´s Bundesliga return

Vincent Kompany said he would wait until Saturday to decide whether Eric Dier and Dayot Upamecano are fit enough to return to action for Bayern Munich.

Bayern welcome Union Berlin to the Allianz Arena, hoping to maintain their advantage over RB Leipzig at the summit of the Bundesliga standings.

Both Dier and Upamecano are nursing injuries, with the former Tottenham defender replaced by Arijon Ibrahimovic in Bayern’s DFB-Pokal win over Mainz in midweek.

Upamecano also missed the trip to the Mewa Arena with a thigh injury, only adding to the defensive woes Kompany has suffered this season.

Bayern are already without Hiroki Ito, Sacha Boey and Josip Stanisic, but Kompany is yet to make a decision on Dier and Upamecano’s role in Saturday’s fixture.

“It’s a pity when players are unavailable. I have 18 fit players, so I have 18 options for the positions,” Kompany told a press conference.

“There have obviously been a lot of games in the last few weeks. I have full confidence in the other boys and in the squad.”

“The tendency (for Dier and Upamecano) is good but still I will take my time until tomorrow. But it looks good.”

Sonnige Einheit vor #FCBFCU #FCBayern pic.twitter.com/MXboOrn7GZ

— FC Bayern München (@FCBayern) November 1, 2024

During their win over Mainz on Wednesday, Kompany was forced to play a central defensive partnership made up of Leon Goretzka and Konrad Laimer.

And the Bayern boss was not against starting that same duo against Union Berlin this weekend after their strong showing in the DFB-Pokal.

“I could say it is bad for us with two, three or four defenders missing,” Kompany added.

“But I have full faith in the other players. I hope they will be fit but in any other case I have faith in the other lads.”

Kompany has collected 20 points in his first eight Bundesliga games as Bayern head coach, the best return since Carlo Ancelotti in 2016.

No coach in top-flight history has seen his side score as many goals in their first eight games as Kompany (29), and the Belgian has reason to be confident this weekend.

They have not lost any of their 10 league meetings with Union Berlin (W7, D3) – the only other side Bayern have faced as often in the top-flight without losing is Darmstadt.

However, Kompany was wary of the threat Bo Svensson’s side, who have picked up 15 points after eight Bundesliga games – only ever being better off in 2022-23 (17).

“They have done it well so far. They are up there and we will not be underestimating them. But the game is about us,” Kompany said.

“You can see that they are very strong in defence and on the counter. This is a team that knows what it has to do. But in the end it is a home game for us.”