Philipp Lahm says fatigue isn't the problem at Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich defender Philipp Lahm has said that fatigue is not a valid excuse for his club's lacking performances during the early stages of the season.
Seven of Bayern's players formed part of Germany's World Cup squad, but Lahm, who captains Germany in Michael Ballack's absence and serves as Bayern's vice-captain, said that his club's problems go beyond tiredness from his country's run in South Africa.
"Tiredness from the World Cup must no longer be an excuse. The problems at Bayern are deeper. We are already playing under severe pressure due to the lack of success at the start of the season. We always need to win and this pressure can be tiring," the
26-year-old told German daily Bild.
Bayern is 12th in the Bundesliga, with only eight points from seven games.
But in the Champions League, Louis van Gaal's team has won their first two fixtures against AS Roma and FC Basel.
Joachim Low, coach of Germany's national team, has said that his players are tired after their World Cup performance, which saw his team finish third after overcoming Uruguay 3–2 in the match for third place.
But Lahm, who will feature in his country's qualifiers against Turkey on Friday and against Kazakhstan on Tuesday, said that it is a lack of momentum, rather than physical exhaustion that is plaguing his club.
"You feel a little bit empty, but you are actually fully motivated. However, there is sometimes a lack of drive. It is difficult to do something about it, but now is the time to move away from such talk," he said in an interview with Sueddeutsche Zeitung.
Bayern, who has lost three games and drawn two in this year's Bundesliga, host Hannover 96 in the Bundesliga and CFR Cluj in the Champions League after the international break.
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