|
Bayern Munich defender Jerome Boateng has played down his recent training-ground scuffle with Robert Lewandowski, saying: "It's part of football." Boateng and Lewandowski were sent from the training field after their bustup on Wednesday, which was sparked after the Germany defender had made a strong tackle on his teammate. Boateng, though, suggested it had been blown out of proportion, telling reporters: "You don't want lose, and the other person does not want to lose, and for a moment you feel you've been treated unfairly, and the other person does too, and you just clash. "It also happens during games -- it's part of football and we all know how to view it." Bayern have faced criticism from several parties for a perceived lack of effort as they have lost all three of their Bundesliga games since winning the title at the end of last month. Boateng was singled out by Paderborn president Wilfried Finke, who said the Bayern defender "escorted the attacker without even trying to win the ball" when Freiburg's Nils Petersen scored his side's late winner last weekend. Freiburg's 2-1 win that day allowed them to exit the relegation zone ahead of the final round of fixtures this weekend, leading to accusations that Bayern were showing a lack of professionalism that could prove costly for other clubs in the battle for survival. However, Boateng suggested his clash with Lewandowski was evidence that the players are still showing passion. "We are still fired up in training," he said. "People claiming we are already in a holiday mode are wrong -- we are definitely not in a holiday mode. I don't really like those statements, to be honest." Former Hannover striker Dieter Schatzschneider was one of the most forthright critics of Bayern after the Freiburg match, calling the champions a "piss team" -- a strong German term used to suggest the players are idiotic and do not have the right attitude. Poland international Lewandowski told Bild he had been unaware of the term and had to look it up in the dictionary. "That's not a nice word," he said. "That's not polite. Why did he say that? We are a championship-winning team. "The last three games might not have been perfect, but we had incredible injury problems throughout the season, and always fought regardless. I played in Freiburg despite my facial injury, wearing a carbon mask, and Manuel Neuer played despite a heel injury. We have shown many times that we are super team. To reprimand us is just unfair!"
|
