Bayern Munich will not go on training this winter. Vincent Kompany puts an end to a 14-year-long tradition.
We know that the winter break is short in most championships. In Germany, that said, it was above the European average since the Bundesliga was suspended during the holidays, and Bayern Munich’s last match took place on December 20.
The Bavarians will resume on January 11 against Borussia Mönchengladbach, but Vincent Kompany did not want to resume training before the New Year. He therefore refused to go on training in the Middle East, as the Bavarian club has done for 14 years.
Kompany and his management were on the same page, believing that the travel time to and from the Middle East was not worth it. However, an offer from Abu Dhabi was on the table from Bayern Munich and would have represented a nice financial windfall.
Louis Van Gaal was the first Bayern Munich coach to travel to the Middle East: the Recorder was then invited to Doha, Qatar, for the next ten years.
Bayern is not alone in staying in Germany this winter: the majority of German clubs have decided to do without a winter training camp in the sun. This is the case of Leipzig, Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund, to name a few.
