Sane to return to Bayern squad for Frankfurt clash

Leroy Sane could make his return from injury when Bayern Munich face Eintracht Frankfurt this weekend, Hansi Flick has confirmed.

Germany winger Sane has made just three appearances for Bayern since arriving from Manchester City in July in a deal potentially worth €60million.

The 24-year-old has been sidelined since being forced off in the second half of the 4-1 defeat to Hoffenheim on September 27 having suffered a right knee injury.

While Sane returned to team training on Thursday and is available for selection, Serge Gnabry will sit out Saturday’s game at the Allianz Arena following his positive coronavirus test.

“Everyone is fit. Leroy Sane is in the squad. We are on the right track,” said Flick on Friday.

“We’re not planning to start him; we have to go step by step. We have to wait for the game, but he is an option. We are happy about it.

“Serge Gnabry will be out at the weekend. We have to wait and see [when he can return]. We are focused on Frankfurt with the players who are available to us.”

Hansi #Flick on Eintracht: “They play with a lot of passion, they run hard and commit to challenges. Frankfurt constantly put their teams under pressure. It’s important for us to be alert and focused from the start and then play our game.” #FCBSGE pic.twitter.com/WM3vpg6pBp

— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) October 23, 2020

Flick will be forced into a change in midfield with Corentin Tolisso suspended due to his red card in last weekend’s 4-1 victory over Arminia Bielefeld.

In four Bundesliga appearances this season, Tolisso has already had as many shots on target (three) as he managed in 13 league outings last term. The France international is also averaging four more duels (up to 13 from nine) and duels won (up to eight from four) per 90 minutes than he did in 2019-20.

“You can feel that he’s enjoying his football,” said Flick. “Last season, he had problems with injuries and then didn’t play too much.

“We sat down at the end of last season and talked. How he’s playing now is how he played for Lyon. A weight has fallen off his shoulders; he’s enjoying football.

“I’m glad he scored the goal; it gives him confidence. He has quality and good results shooting from long distance, but also in the box. He’s also very strong.”

Frankfurt are unbeaten in their past eight Bundesliga games, avoiding defeat in their opening four matches in a season for the first time since 2012-13.

However, Adi Hutter’s side have lost each of their past 12 competitive away matches against Bayern, conceding 40 goals and scoring just seven.