Bayern Munich CEO and European Club Association chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has questioned the role of international football in modern football after the Bundesliga champions extended their winless run to three games with an "unacceptable" performance against Frankfurt.
Bayern twice let the lead slip against 10-man Frankfurt and eventually claimed a 2-2 draw, but had to do without Robert Lewandowski from the start and Arturo Vidal altogether after the pair returned from international duty with knocks.
Arturo Vidal and Robert Lewandowski, returned with knocks from international duty with their respective countries.
"That's a problem we are gradually getting with national teams," Rummenigge said. "Players come back and aren't fit like [Arturo] Vidal at the moment, but also other players in the past.
"We have to slowly consider the role that international football plays in world football."
Spain internationals Javi Martinez and Juan Bernat, as well as wingers Franck Ribery and Douglas Costa also missed the game through injury, but Rummenigge felt Bayern's star-studded squad should have been able to cope despite the mounting number of absentees.
"Of course we had many players missing, again we've got five or six injured players, but we are blessed with such a deep and top quality squad that we shouldn't need to make excuses," he said.
This is Bayern's worst run of results since the end of the 2014-15 season. Already crowned Bundesliga champions, they suffered losses against Leverkusen, Augsburg and Freiburg, and were knocked out on penalties versus Borussia Dortmund in the DFB Pokal, before also slipping to a crushing 3-0 defeat in the Champions League semifinal first leg in Barcelona.