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Harry Kane set for his first start at Bayern Munich on Friday vs. Werder Bremen
Harry Kane has had an "immediate effect" on Bayern Munich's locker-room atmosphere and is expected to make his first start for the German champions against Werder Bremen on Friday, Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel said Thursday.
Hours after being announced as a Bayern player, the England captain came on as a 64th-minute substitute in Bayern's 3-0 loss to Leipzig in the German Super Cup on Saturday. Kane indicated Sunday that he might need time to adapt to Bayern after 19 years at Tottenham.
Tuchel said Kane will start Friday's game "if nothing happens today, nothing extraordinary," and said he was fitting in well with the rest of the Bayern team.
"My first impressions of Harry are fantastic," Tuchel said. "He is a top professional, the quality is outstanding, and he’s a fantastic human being, he is very open, he’s first on the training pitch, he is open in the dressing room. I think he has immediate effect in the dressing room with his personality, with his approach to football, his love for the game, you feel it every day. You feel it in every little exercise."
Tuchel added that injured first-choice goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is further along in his recovery than expected after recent surgery and could return to training with the rest of the team in a matter of weeks.
"The development with Manu is extremely positive," Tuchel said. "I saw him training myself the last couple of days. I'm no recovery expert, obviously, but what I saw was very impressive. It looked very good, and so we are counting on a return to team training in the coming weeks, and that obviously has effects on our planning."
Tuchel added that "the priority in any planning is basically to give Manu time and rest to get healthy and get back into the goal, and at the same time we obviously want to be competitive at a very high level."
The 37-year-old Neuer hasn’t played since last year’s FIFA Men's World Cup. He broke his leg while skiing after the tournament and needed another operation recently to remove metal implants from earlier surgery.
That could affect Bayern’s search for a new goalkeeper after playing against Leipzig with longtime backup Sven Ulreich in goal, and whether the club signs any new keeper to challenge Neuer for the starting spot or simply as extra cover behind Ulreich. Tuchel said Thursday that Bayern was still looking for a goalkeeper but didn't say what that player's role in the squad would be.
Bayern chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen said last week the club had tried and failed to sign Kepa Arrizabalaga before he opted for Real Madrid on loan from Chelsea. More recently, Bayern was reported to be interested in Manchester City backup Stefan Ortega.
Bayern had Switzerland goalkeeper Yann Sommer as a stopgap last season when Neuer was injured, but he left for Inter Milan this month.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
