Bayern Munich‘s chances to advance to the semifinals of the Champions League took a big hit Tuesday when the Bundesliga squad fell to Manchester City, 3-0, in the first leg of the quarterfinal match. But another hit could shake things up even worse for the team after Bayern’s Sadio Mané reportedly punched teammate Leroy Sané in the face in the locker room after the loss, per Sky Sports.
Sané’s lip was reportedly bleeding after the altercation and the two had to be separated.
BREAKING: Bayern Munich forward Sadio Mane punched teammate Leroy Sane in the face after yesterday’s Champions League defeat at Manchester City. pic.twitter.com/diUYAnBiDF
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) April 12, 2023
Mané, the 31-year-old Senegalese forward, joined Bayern in 2022 from Liverpool. He’s only scored six goals with four assists for Bayern in 20 appearances, including three goals in the Champions League. Sané, the 27-year-old German wing, has played for Bayern since 2020 after spending five years with Manchester City. He’s scored seven times with five assists this season for Bayern in 17 starts, including four in the Champions League.
It’s unclear exactly what the two fought over, but the manner in which Bayern lost likely played a huge role. Not only did they give up three goals and lose their first Champions League match, but Bayern failed to score despite holding a 56-44 possession edge over City. Bayern also managed just four shots on goal — three of which came from Sané. Mané also didn’t enter the game until the 69th minute, moments before City scored two goals six minutes
It likely didn’t help, too, that Bayern fired manager Julian Nagelsmann three weeks before the quarterfinal match and replaced him with former Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain manager Thomas Tuchel.
Bayern has a week before they head to England to play City in an attempt to save their Champions League title chances.
