Bayern Munich manager Vincent Kompany gives latest on Harry Kane fitness for Real Madrid | OneFootball

Bayern Munich manager Vincent Kompany remained coy on the fitness of star striker Harry Kane ahead of their clash with Real Madrid in the Champions League. The first leg takes place at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday night at 21:00 CEST, with Bayern coming into the match as favourites.

One thing that could impact that tag is the presence of Kane. The England international missed training all last week with an ankle knock suffered while away with the Three Lions. He returned to training on Monday, and was included in the Bayern squad, but Kompany would not confirm whether he would start.

“Even though he hasn’t been training on the pitch during this time, he’s gone through a second phase of recovery. And during this time, even though he hasn’t played, he’s trained a lot. I don’t think he’s lost his rhythm. But we’ll see what happens tomorrow. He’s here, and that’s very positive. Everyone’s here except Ulreich,” he told Diario AS.

Harry Kane’s fitness

Continuing on to speak about Kane, Kompany said that he was not sure if the 32-year-old was ready to start.

“I think it’s different if you have a muscle injury or something with the ligaments, or pain. This match is very important, and everyone, including Kane and I, knows how important it is. It’s appropriate to have a conversation with each player and get their approval. And if things are okay, then go ahead. There’s no need to overthink it. But… yes, you often ask yourself this question beforehand. But I don’t know if he’s ready. That’s why I can’t give an answer yet. We’ll see tomorrow.”

The player that spoke to the media for Bayern was Joshua Kimmich, and he was effusive in his praise for Kane. Diario AS also covered his quotes.

“This season he’s scored 40 or 50 goals… so we’re talking about someone very important. Very. But he gives us so much more than just goals. Because he’s not selfish. He doesn’t just aim to score as many goals as possible. He’s a leader, a team player; he strives for the team’s success. And that’s very important in an attacking player.”

What Bayern Munich took from last year’s defeat

Last season Kompany saw his first Champions League campaign as a manager come to an end in the quarter-finals against Inter, while the year before Real Madrid thwarted Bayern’s path to the final. Kompany was asked what he and they had learned from previous years.

“The answer can be divided into three parts. First, we must react to a defeat and continue thinking about winning. The mentality must simply be to keep moving forward. Second, we must see what we learned last year. Just as it’s true that in other years we were missing many players… whose names I don’t like to mention, because it puts them in the firing line. If you ask me what happened, the easy thing would be to tell you this. But no.”

“However, if we analyse the players we have today, we are in a very good position to play this match. And we must do everything in our power to win. Everything we do must be related to what we can do; not to what the opponents can do. And that’s what we must focus on: winning tomorrow.”

‘Bayern and Real Madrid are the two biggest clubs in the world’

Kimmich referred to Bayern and Real Madrid as the two biggest sides in the world.

“It’s special to play against Real Madrid. For me, they and we are the biggest clubs in the world. But I have to be honest: our last few matches weren’t very good for us. They just knocked us out. But as I said, we had a lot of players out, and then there’s the second leg at the Bernabéu. Tomorrow’s match is the first leg, it’s not decisive. And not everything will be decided tomorrow.”

The Mbappe and Vinicius partnership

Meanwhile in the Spanish capital, much of the debate has centred around the compatibility of Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe in the Real Madrid side. Kompany chose not to get involved in it.

“But this isn’t my business at all! Believe me, if you saw the press conferences in Munich, I have plenty of hot topics to discuss. Why bother coming here? All I can say is that they’re both incredible. And from here on out, it’s Real Madrid’s job.”

For his part, Kimmich maintained that Mbappe is a player that aids any side.

“Mbappe is a player capable of helping any team. He has tremendous qualities and is very important for Real Madrid. Especially this season, when it seemed like things weren’t going well for them. I’ve faced him many times, both at PSG and with France, and he has a lot of talent.”

Los Blancos are coming off the back of a 2-1 defeat to RCD Mallorca on Saturday, which has somewhat stunted optimism which had grown following wins over Manchester City and Atletico Madrid.