Thomas Tuchel warns Bayern Munich that RB Leipzig will be ‘dangerous’ opposition

Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel says Saturday’s opponents RB Leipzig are a “dangerous” proposition for his team.

Leipzig have won their last two encounters with Bayern, including the season-opening DFL-Supercup last month.

Tuchel’s men have recovered well to lead the Bundesliga with 13 points from their opening five matches, with England striker Harry Kane’s seven goals spurring them on.

Thomas Tuchel ahead of #RBLFCB:

“Dayot Upamecano, Minjae Kim and Thomas Müller all trained yesterday and all came out feeling good. If everything stays the same, then they will be able to be part of the squad.” #packmas

— FC Bayern Munich (@FCBayernEN) September 29, 2023

Leipzig sit a point and three places further back, but the trip to Saxony will arguably present the toughest challenge yet to Bayern in this season’s Bundesliga campaign.

“They’re dangerous as a collective, very unified as a team,” Tuchel said of Leipzig at his pre-match press conference.

“Leipzig are very clear in their processes, we fully recognise their qualities.

“We’ve lost our last two games against them, which hurt. We’ve been on a good run since the Supercup defeat, and now it’s about backing that up.

“The mood is good, the mentality is right. The time has come to turn the tables, but it will certainly be difficult.

“We’ve been very focused and confident in the last few games. Now it’s another step up. Leipzig have a very strong squad.

“They’ve managed changes well. They’ve beaten us recently, which we don’t like.

“It’s about coming up with a response and continuing from where we’ve left off recently. We know it’s a difficult task, but we’re confident enough to say we’re going to Leipzig to win.”

Bayern are set to be able to call on former Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano, along with fellow defender Kim Min-Jae and attacker Thomas Muller after they trained with no adverse effects this week following injuries.

Forward Serge Gnabry is set to miss out with an arm injury, while Dutch defender Matthijs De Ligt suffered a knee injury in the 7-0 victory over Bochum last weekend and is also expected to be out.

Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer returned to partial training for the first time this week since his leg fracture in a skiing accident last winter, but is still some way off making a return to playing.

Tuchel added on Neuer: “It’s very good news. Manu did a partial integration. It wasn’t an intense session and he did parts of it. We mustn’t get carried away. It’s another step.

“Once he’s fully in training things can progress quickly, but he’s still some way off that.”

Amadou Haidara has trained following a muscle injury to be available for Leipzig, but Timo Werner will miss out due to a back problem.

Willi Orban and Dani Olmo are absent due to injuries suffered on international duty, while El Chadaille Bitshiabu is still sidelined by a medial ligament tear.