Kimmich will still likely be out for FC Bayern’s midweek trip to take on FC Köln.
Bayern Munich got their 2026 off to an absolutely flying start with an emphatic 8-1 win over VfL Wolfsburg at the Allianz Arena led by goals from Michael Olise, Luis Diaz, Harry Kane, Raphaël Guerreiro, Leon Goretzka, and two own goals from Wolfsburg.
In the first half, Dženan Pejčinović‘s equalizer for Wolfsburg looked like it had the potential to lead to a tricky evening for Vincent Kompany’s side, but Diaz’s 30th minute header set the tone for what was an onslaught of goals from Bayern in the second half that was far too much for Wolfsburg to handle.
From the start of the match, Kompany had to do without Alphonso Davies, Kim Min-jae, Joshua Kimmich, and Jamal Musiala, who still isn’t quite ready to make his return to action after a long injury layover from this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup. Tom Bischof and Aleksandar Pavlović anchored Bayern’s midfield in Kimmich’s absence and Kompany slotted in Josip Stanišić at left back, though the Croatian did come off injured late in the second half.
The matches will be coming thick and fast in both domestic and European competition to start off the new year for Bayern and they have a midweek trip to face FC Köln coming up — Kompany will likely have to make some rotations to keep as much of his squad as fit and healthy as possible.
For Kimmich, as he revealed after Bayern’s big win over Wolfsburg, the Köln trip will probably be too soon for him to return to action. “I don’t think so,” Bayern’s number six replied when he was directly asked about the potential of him being involved at FC Köln next week by journalist Heiko Niederrer (via @iMiaSanMia).
Kimmich is more than likely raring to go but rushing him back too soon could prove to be costly. The midfielder has been out injured for the last two matches after picking up an ankle problem before the last match of 2025 before the winterpause, which was the 4-0 win at Heidenheim. It’s now looking like he will miss three straight matches for Bayern — something that does not happen too often for Kimmich.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
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Category: General Sports
