FootyChatter.com

Bayern Munich have escalated their war of words with the Canadian soccer association over a season-ending injury to Alphonso Davies. The left-back is expected to be out for six months after tearing a cruciate ligament in his right knee and damaging the meniscus during a 2-1 win for Canada over the United States. Despite the political tensions between the neighbouring countries, the match was a damp squib as a third-place contest in the Concacaf Nations League. That’s because two days earlier, Canada lost to eventual winners Mexico in a match where Davies also picked up an injury. However, he was deemed fit for the US clash, something his agent later questioned, and now Bayern have taken up the complaint with a far angrier tone. Speaking ahead of a 3-2 Bundesliga win over St. Pauli, CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen told BILD: "We demand a complete clarification of the events from Canada Soccer and expressly reserve the right to take legal action. "Sending an obviously injured player with a damaged knee on a twelve-hour intercontinental flight without thorough medical evaluation is, in our view, grossly negligent and a clear violation of medical due diligence. “The fact that Davies was even used was in no way comprehensible. " His comments were later supported by director of sport Christoph Freund, who added: “Phonzy [Davies] flies back 12 hours and we assume it's nothing serious, that it was a blow. "And then something like this comes out. It's negligent, it's unprofessional, it's unacceptable. We need to talk about it, we need to clarify it. "The way things went down was incorrect. We want to fully investigate this and find out how it really happened. " Giving Bayern’s version of events, he added: “Before the third-place match he complained of fatigue and it was agreed that he would not play. "You can always say that the player can decide whether to play, but he's a young lad who wants to help his country and is the captain. ” Concerns over Davies’ treatment were first flagged up by his agent, Nick Huoseh, who told local media in Munich: "I was surprised he started, because he had stated that he was unable to start. “They should have handled the situation better; this could have been prevented, 100 per cent. "Before his time in Canada, Jesse [Marsch] was a professional coach at the highest level and should know full well that you shouldn't take risks with players if they tell you they can't play. " Despite the protests, the Canadian football association has denied any wrongdoing, with spokesperson Paulo Senra telling The Athletic: "Canada soccer's coaches and experienced medical staff are true professionals and have always put the safety and well-being of the players first. Anyone who claims otherwise is wrong. ” In a later statement, he told transfermarkt. de: "We have further reviewed the circumstances surrounding Alphonso Davies' treatment. The medical records confirm that the treatment protocols were properly followed.  "Our communication logs also show that our medical staff kept Bayern Munich informed throughout the tournament. " The loss of Davies comes at a bad time for Bayern, who also lost Dayot Upamecano during the international break. The Frenchman is likely to also miss the remainder of the season, meaning Vincent Kompany will have to rely on Eric Dier or Hiroki Ito to partner Kim Min-jae in defence for their Champions League quarter-final tie with Inter Milan. © 2025 talk SPORT Limited

Registered in England No. 2806093. Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, SE1 9GF

talk SPORT is a registered trade mark of Wireless Group Media (GB) Limited.

This service is provided on talk SPORT Limited's Terms of Use in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy.