Vincent Kompany laughs off question after Bayern Munich’s first Bundesliga defeat in 10 months | OneFootball

Among the many things that impress Germans about Bayern Munich head coach Vincent Kompany remains the 39-year-old’s excellent command of the German language. The former Manchester City captain only spent two full seasons in Germany before departing for the Premier League.

The Belgian returned to coach Bayern nearly 16 years after he left the Germany, yet still maintained a firm grip on the language.

Such was naturally still the case during the post-match press conference following Saturday’s shock Bundesliga defeat against Augsburg. Kompany nevertheless sat somewhat distracted as most reporters directed questions at Augsburg head coach Manuel Baum. Kompany noticeably failed to concentrate on one question aimed at Baum.

Given that Bayern hadn’t lost a Bundesliga match since March 8th, 2025 (nearly 10 months) Kompany could be forgiven for being somewhat off his game. Moreover, the reporter was posing a two-part question. Kompany’s part of the question was complex and went on for ages. 

Kompany’s humorous misunderstanding

“Mr. Baum,” the reporter asked the FCA coach. “How is the evening looking for you and the team? I saw that there was a beer-tote in the locker room.“

Kompany couldn’t quite grasp what the reporter meant with the German semi-dialectical word “Tragal” (stemming from the German verb “tragen” (“to carry“).

“A what?” Kompany asked.

“A Tragal beer,” both the Bayern press officer and reporter told Kompany. “A case of beer, a box of beer. In Bavarian: ‘Tragal’.“

“Uh, I didn’t see any beer,” Kompany said.

“I was asking Mr. Baum,” the reporter clarified. “It would have been a big surprise to me if you guys were drinking beer after a defeat.“

“Haha,” Kompany noted whilst taking the misunderstanding in stride. “No, we haven’t fallen that far yet.“

“Today we can have a little beer,” Baum eventually got around to saying. “But most of them [my players] don’t drink anyway.“

GGFN | Peter Weis