At this stage of the season, FC Bayern is dealing with a number of injuries. Most recently, Manuel Neuer has often had to sit out; in the past few weeks, he has only played against Arsenal (2–2) and Atlético (2–0).
This Saturday afternoon, Neuer was back in goal against Mainz 05. In doing so, he broke the record as the oldest player ever to take the field for the record champions in the Bundesliga.
The Bayern goalkeeper thus surpassed Bernd Dreher, who also played as a goalkeeper. Neuer’s clear goal was to do his part to help Bayern secure a victory. But by halftime, Neuer was no longer on the field.
Neuer Injured Against Mainz
Just a few minutes before halftime, with the score 1-0 in favor of the record champions, Neuer suffered an injury. Joshua Kimmich had given Bayern an early lead.
Immediately before Neuer’s injury, Mainz had earned a free kick. Nadiem Amiri sent it into the middle, where the Bayern goalkeeper misjudged the ball and flew past it. At the far post, Jae-sung Lee headed it in to tie the game.
But Neuer immediately signaled that he needed medical attention and was in pain. At the same time, the play was reviewed again. It became clear right away that the Bayern goalkeeper might need to be substituted. Neuer’s shoe and socks were removed, and he received immediate treatment on his recently injured foot.
After a brief examination on the field, the signal was given to the bench: Neuer had to come off. Jonas Urbig had to step in, and without much of a warm-up, the goalkeeper—who had been playing frequently in the Bundesliga recently—was brought on as a substitute.
The question now regarding Neuer is how serious the issue with his foot is, assuming this is a recurrence of his previous injury. Mirko Slomka, the Sky expert, reported at the start of the second half that he had spoken briefly with Max Eberl during halftime, who assumed that it was the same old problem again.
The good news for the experienced goalkeeper is that an international break is coming up, during which he’ll have two weeks to recover.