Yeah, it’s in German… but it’s always interesting to see exactly what an extremely high level team has in terms of off the field recovery.

And the differences in ideas between post - game / training recovery as every country has a different opinion.

You know you’re doing well in training when you’re getting the stamp of approval from the ballers, coach and general manager of Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.

Via FCBayern

“He’s an outstanding footballer with bags of quality – and he’s only 26. I think he’d definitely make his mark in the Bundesliga,” said Miroslav Klose.

“THE really exceptional player in North America, Mexico included,”  from Klinsmann.

“The lad can play, no doubt about it, ” General Managaer Uli Hoeness.

image via FCBayern

Landon Donovan got his second taste of training with Bayern Munich today as 400 fans showed up to watch the Senior Squad (plus Landon, minus the starters who got the full 90 minute run out during Munich’s 2 - 1 win over Shalke at the weekend) take on the Reserve Team.

My opinion - Landon deserves the opportunity to test himself at the highest level.

He’s 26 years old, had done a lot more for this league / country than could ever be credited to him and is the best player America has ever produced, hands down.
images via FCBayern 

When France’s Franck Ribery opted out of his contract with Agent Bruno Heiderscheid only days before his big money transfer from Marseille to Bayern Munich in June of 2007, Heiderscheid pushed for his part of the $33.7 Million transfer / agent fees that came along with the move and took it all the way to the Court of Arbitration of Sport.

With the Luxembourg based Heiderscheid looking for $8.5 Million in damages and being turned down in his initial approach to CAS, the agent appealed to the Swiss Federal Tribunal (Switzerland’s Supreme Court) which not only denied Heiderscheid again, but ruled that he must PAY Ribery back $483,000 in agent fees that the Bayern Munich player had already payed to Heiderscheid.

The Tribunal ruled that because Heiderscheid had a 2000 conviction of Financial Offenses (and Ribery was signed to a contract with Heiderscheid in 2005), his Luxembourg Agent License was consider null and void under French law which states that Agents must have a clean record to hold an Agents license.

In a scathing attack on Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, Bayern Munich General Manager Uli Hoeness declared via the Daily Mail that ‘Thanks to the huge investments many clubs make, there are no longer any serial European Cup winners similar  to Ajax and Bayern in the Seventies.

‘The old hierarchy has been abolished.  A better-balanced competition sounds tempting, but I don’t know whether the investments have been good for football.  I get annoyed every week when I go to fill my car up with petrol. The oil Mafia is taking money out of my pocket to invest it in footballers.

(more…)

Jurgen Klinsmann’s Bayern Munich fell 1-nil to Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan in the inaugural Franz Beckenbauer Cup through Mancini’s absolutely sick goal in the 52nd minute.

Now Munich’s attention will continue to focus on their opening round Bundesliga match against Hamburg on August 15th.

Bayern Munich and Jurgen Klinsmann continued their pre-season preparations today with a match against FC Koln at the RheinEnergie in front of 42,ooo.

And yes, our boy Joseph Ngwenya (of ex-Galaxy / Crew / Dynamo fame) continued his Bayern Munich “3 week trial”, coming on for German International Miroslav Klose at halftime.
1. FC Köln - Bayern Munich 0-0 (H-T: 0-0)

While the match drew nil-nil, I’ll let you decide how Ngwenya did with the 2007/08 Bundesliga Champions.

Check out GOLTV (614 on Direct TV) at 9.30pm East Coast time (6.30 pm West Coast) for the replay and let us know what you thought of the Ex-MLS player and how he did.

image via Cache

Jurgen Klinsmann, along with his Californian assistants Martin Vazquez and Nick Theslof have a lot of work in front of them this season.

Still waiting to see who Klinsmann’s new choice for Captain will be after Oliver Kahn retired.