By John Bagratuni, dpa
Berlin (dpa) – Leaders Bayern Munich have some ongoing coronavirus concerns when they visit lowly Augsburg at the start of a Bundesliga weekend highlighted by the Berlin derby between Union and Hertha.
Full back Josip Stanisic has tested positive for the virus and is in isolation while centre back Niklas Suele is yet to return after reporting an infection last week.
Bayern have said that both are fully vaccinated.
Suele’s positive test sent four other Bayern players into quarantine as close contacts but that group including Serge Gnabry and (not vaccinated) Joshua Kimmich is gradually returning to training.
Coach Julian Nagelsmann has a big squad to chose from as they head some 100 kilometres north to Bavarian rivals Augsburg, who are third last and have only beaten Bayern once in their past 20 top-flight derbies.
“Bayern win nine out of 10 times but it is possible to get a point or to win, and that’s what we will try,” Augsburg coach Markus Weinzierl has said.
Union Berlin also have coronavirus woes with forward Kevin Behrens quarantined after a positive test and missing the derby with Hertha which will take place in front of a full house of 22,000 vaccinated or recovered fans at the Alte Foersterei.
Union have upstaged their rivals lately despite Hertha being boosted by investor Lars Windhorst over the past years.
They finished far ahead of them in seventh last season to qualify for the European Conference League and are also ahead this term, entering the game in eighth while Hertha are four points back in 13th.
“We don’t have to be ashamed. We are having a rebuilding phase after a rebuilding phase,” Hertha coach Pal Dardai told Thursday’s Bild paper.
Looking at the match, he added: “Every tackle is important. You must be really fit on the day. And you can’t be over-motivated because it can be dangerous to be carried away by emotions.
“Everyone should be envious that a derby is being played in Berlin.”
Elsewhere after the international break, second-placed Borussia Dortmund want to rebound from defeat in Leipzig which saw them slip four points behind Bayern, and prompted former Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge to say “we can already slowly dust off the championship trophy.”
That drew a sharp reaction from Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke but Dortmund must prove their worth when they host lowly VfB Stuttgart on Saturday as Bayern could be seven points clear by kick-off.
The other games are Leverkusen v Bochum, Bielefeld v Wolfsburg, Moenchengladbach v bottom side Fuerth, Hoffenheim v Leipzig (Saturday), Freiburg v Frankfurt and Mainz v Cologne (Sunday).
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