Dorival Junior feels Vinicius Junior suffered an "injustice" by not winning the Ballon d'Or, as the Brazil head coach slammed the "unfair situation".
The Real Madrid winger failed to scoop the accolade despite scoring 24 goals and providing 11 assists last season, as Los Blancos won a LaLiga and Champions League double.
The club opted to skip the ceremony after hearing Vinicius Junior would miss out on the top award, which was won by Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri.
Madrid's decision not to attend generated mixed reviews. City head coach Pep Guardiola empathised with Carlo Ancelotti's side, but LaLiga president Javier Tebas accused them of "exaggerated victimhood".
Dorival acknowledges Rodri was deserving of the award, having helped City to an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League title before starring Spain's victorious Euro 2024 squad.
However, the Selecao boss believes Vinicius has every right to feel aggrieved at missing out.
"In my opinion, [it's] an unfair situation, especially because it is an individual award," Dorival told reporters during a press conference.
"Nothing against whoever won the award, quite the opposite. It is the recognition of one of the great players of Spanish football, but Vinicius - for the work he did - should have received different attention.
"But the greatest prize that Vinícius won was the recognition and respect of his people. The vast majority of the Brazilian people realised the injustice that was done to the player who could have deservedly received the award."
Rene Meulensteen believes Manchester United must do everything in their power to keep Ruud van Nistelrooy at the club, amid Ruben Amorim's impending arrival.
United confirmed the appointment of Sporting CP boss Amorim on Friday, four days after announcing they had parted ways with Erik ten Hag following a dismal run of form.
The Red Devils currently sit 14th in the Premier League after their first nine games of the season, and welcome Chelsea to Old Trafford this Sunday.
Van Nistelrooy, who joined Ten Hag's coaching staff in July, oversaw his first game as interim boss in midweek, earning a 5-2 win over Leicester City in the EFL Cup.
Amorim will officially take charge on November 11, meaning the Dutchman will remain at the helm for United's fixtures against Chelsea, PAOK and Leicester.
The Portuguese arrives at Old Trafford with an impressive resume, having guided Sporting to their first league title in 19 years, and winning the Primeira Liga again in 2023-24.
His 120 victories in the league give him a 76.92% win ratio, which is the best of any Sporting coach on record.
But former United coach Meulensteen believes it is crucial Van Nistelrooy remains at the club, with his experience vital in helping Amorim understand the pressures of the job.
"I think the club will have to manufacture something. It's very clear that Amorim wants to bring his own staff, which I think is very understandable," Meulensteen told Stats Perform.
"He can look at it and say: 'OK, Ruud has got some experience with the players, and he might be able to help me to tell me this and that and the other'.
"That's the conversation he needs to have. If he doesn't see a place for him in and around the first team, then he has to be clear about that as well.
"Because at the end of the day, if you see a little bit of what happened with Erik, let's assume if Amorim had said: 'listen I'm staying in Sporting, I'm not doing it, forget it', then obviously we wouldn't have these conversations.
"Then, it would have been a little bit more quiet, and I would have said to Ruud: 'listen Ruud, you take over for now, right, and see how we go and see how you get on with it'.
"And if that, for instance, started to come off, Ruud would have given the board and Ineos and all those people enough confidence to say: 'listen, I'll be more than capable of carrying on with it'.
"Now they haven't gone that way, so I can also understand if the manager says: 'no, I don't want anybody that I don't know in that setup, because I really want to do my own thing'.
"Ruud made it clear he wants to stay and be part of it, so at least that's a positive for the incoming manager. If the incoming manager has other plans, then the club has to find something different."
Amorim will be United's youngest boss since 33-year-old Wilf McGuinness took charge of them on Boxing Day 1970 against Derby County.
Since March 2020, when Amorim took charge, Sporting have the highest win percentage of any team across Europe's top 10 leagues (77% - 120 wins out of 156 games).
His first game at the helm comes against Ipswich Town after the international break, but it remains to be seen whether Van Nistelrooy will remain alongside him.
Darius Garland scored 25 points, Donovan Mitchell added 22 and the Cleveland Cavaliers improved to 6-0 with a 120-109 victory Friday night over the Orlando Magic, who played their first game without injured All-Star Paolo Banchero.
The Cavs are the only unbeaten team in the Eastern Conference. The last time Cleveland started 6-0 was in 2016 with LeBron James when it lost to Golden State in the NBA Finals. The club's best start was 8-0 in 1976.
The early meeting between Orlando and Cleveland was a rematch of last season's tense opening-round playoff series won by the Cavs in seven games.
Banchero is expected to miss at least a month - and maybe longer - with a torn right oblique. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 draft was on an early tear, averaging 29 points with 8.8 rebounds and 5.6 assists before getting hurt Wednesday.
Orlando's Jalen Suggs scored a career-high 28 points and had eight rebounds and seven assists. Franz Wagner had 17 points.
The Magic hung around and were still within 10 late in the third quarter, when Cavs reserves Caris LeVert, Sam Merrill and Georges Niang all made 3-pointers in the final 2:17 to give Cleveland a 17-point lead going to the fourth.
Cleveland improved to 30-7 in Mitchell's last 37 regular-season games since January.
Thunder roll past Blazers to stay unbeaten
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points in 28 minutes and the Oklahoma City Thunder remained perfect with a 137-114 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Jalen Williams added 22 points for the Thunder and Cason Wallace and Aaron Wiggins each had 13 off the bench as Oklahoma City improved to 5-0.
Jerami Grant led Portland with 17 points and Deandre Ayton added 14.
After the Blazers came back from down 17 to tie the game at 68 at the half, Oklahoma City outscored the Blazers 38-17 in the third quarter and Portland was never able to get back in it.
Wolves edge Nuggets in thriller
Anthony Edwards hit a go-ahead 7-foot floater with 25.7 seconds left, and Rudy Gobert iced the game with two free throws to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves past the Denver Nuggets 119-116.
Edwards scored 29 points, Gobert had 17 points and 14 rebounds and Julius Randle added 23 points and seven assists for the Timberwolves, who recovered from a 25-3 fourth-quarter run by the Nuggets.
Nikola Jokić had 26 points, 13 assists and nine rebounds and hit two free throws with 2:30 left to put Denver up 116-109, before Minnesota roared back. Jokic had a chance to tie the game at 119, but Gobert forced an errant corner 3-pointer with 2.3 seconds to go.
Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 31 points and 11 rebounds in a rematch of last season's Western Conference semifinal.
Michael Porter Jr. added 26 points for the Nuggets, who lost point guard Jamal Murray to the concussion protocol in the third quarter after colliding with Randle.
Christian Braun dunked over the 7-foot-1 Gobert with 5:14 left and got even closer to his face with a taunting scream that egged Gobert into grabbing Braun by the neck. The benches cleared, shouts were exchanged, and both players got a technical.
Xabi Alonso believes Bayer Leverkusen delivered their most complete performance in the Bundesliga despite being held to a goalless draw against Stuttgart on Friday.
Leverkusen missed the chance to close the gap at the summit of the league table, despite dominating proceedings at the BayArena throughout.
The hosts twice struck the woodwork in either half through Edmond Tapsoba and Victor Boniface, while Florian Wirtz was denied by a wonderful stop from Alexander Nubel late on.
Leverkusen ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 2.19 compared to Stuttgart's 0.28, further emphasising the superiority they had over their opponents.
The result saw Alonso's side produce their second-highest underperformance in terms of their xG since the Spaniard took over the club in 2022, though the Leverkusen boss was happy with his side's display.
"We are unhappy. We thought we had done enough to win it," Alonso said. "We pressed well. Our players showed a lot of energy to press a lot.
"We created a lot of chances in the first half. But we also had chances in the second half."
"Maybe the most complete performance from us even though we did not score. It was a top game.
"From Monday we focus on Liverpool. A big game, to play in Anfield," said the former Liverpool player.
But Leverkusen's struggles away from home continued. Alonso's side have now just won one of their last five league games, drawing the other four.
They remained third in the Bundesliga table, but are now four points behind RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich, who now both have a game in hand.
"It is still early in the season," Alonso said when asked about the growing gap with the league leaders. "There are enough games. We want to keep going."
Carlton Morris is confident that Luton Town's "ruthless streak" will return after they came from a goal down to secure a 1-1 draw with West Brom on Friday.
Having dominated the first half at Kenilworth Road, the Hatters found themselves behind when Josh Maja neatly flicked Karlan Grant's cross beyond Thomas Kaminski.
But Luton drew level on the hour-mark when Tahith Chong picked off Alex Mowatt's loose pass before driving a low strike into the far corner.
The visitors did, however, have a chance to snatch all three points two minutes from time, but substitute Devante Cole saw his acrobatic effort brilliantly saved by Kaminsiki.
Luton remain just outside the relegation zone on goal difference, and have now just picked up five points from an available 21 in their last seven games.
Rob Edwards' side have also scored just 15 times this term, but Morris, who scored eight times in the Premier League last season, believes it is only a matter of time before they put their chances away.
"I think it's another excellent performance from us at home. It's three on the bounce now for performances we can be proud of," Morris told Sky Sports.
"It would just be nice to bring the points as well.
"We're getting the balls in the right areas so much, it's just that bit of quality, that ruthless streak at the end that we're missing at the moment. But it will come."
For West Brom, it is now five consecutive draws in the Championship, with their fine start to the campaign briefly halted.
The Baggies remain in the play-off picture, but could drop out of the top six over the weekend if Blackburn Rovers, Watford and Norwich City win their games.
Carlos Corberan's side managed just three shots on target from the 10 attempts they had, accumulating an expected goals (xG) total of 0.73, but the West Brom boss said mistakes ultimately cost his side.
"I think in general it was difficult to impose our identity today. We knew that they would be aggressive in the press when we had the ball in our half," Corberan said.
"But for me, we didn't find a way in the first-half to create the game we wanted to create. That was to play the game in the attacking half.
"In the second-half, the team went on the pitch with the idea to see if we could correct it and play better.
"We tried to play from the back but we lost the ball and they scored the goal. They created the mistake with aggressiveness.
"And then in the end, the reaction of the team, we tried to go for the result we wanted to achieve. But in general, it's a game we didn't do many things to get more than a point.
"We didn't manage the game well enough to achieve a positive result."
Bayer Leverkusen missed the chance to close the gap at the Bundesliga summit after a wasteful display saw them draw 0-0 with Stuttgart.
Leverkusen remain third in the standings, four points behind RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich, who play Borussia Dortmund and Union Berlin respectively on Saturday.
Xabi Alonso's side dominated proceedings from the first whistle, registering 10 attempts in the first half, though only three were on Alexander Nubel's goal.
They came closest to breaking the deadlock five minutes before the break when Edmond Tapsoba rattled the crossbar with a thumping header.
Leverkusen struck the woodwork again shortly after the restart, this time through Victor Boniface, as the Stuttgart net continued to live a charmed life at the BayArena.
Boniface was then denied by a miraculous save by Nubel in the 73rd minute, before the visiting goalkeeper denied Florian Wirtz to seal a share of the spoils for Stuttgart.
Data Debrief: All bark, no bite
Leverkusen lacked the attacking spark that helped them romp to the Bundesliga title, and this result could prove pivotal in their attempts of reclaiming their league crown.
The goalless draw saw the hosts underperform their expected goals (xG) value by 2.19. Only in a 0-0 draw with Borussia Monchengladbach last season have they underperformed their xG value more in a league game under Alonso (3.0).
Boniface was arguably the biggest culprit for wasting those golden opportunities. He had four shots, with two of those on target, while he also missed three big chances.
After a commanding match-winning 94 in the first ODI against England, West Indies opener Evin Lewis is riding high on momentum and aiming to carry his form into Saturday’s second game in North Sound, Antigua.
Lewis’ knock, punctuated by blistering drives and calculated power hitting, laid the foundation for the Caribbean side’s eight-wicket victory, which handed them a valuable 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Reflecting on his performance, Lewis credited his partnership with fellow opener Brandon King (30) as crucial to setting the tone for the chase after the West Indies bowlers did their part in dismissing England for 209.
The pair’s composed 118-run opening stand gave the West Indies early control over the game, leaving captain Shai Hope and Keacy Carty, who were unbeaten on six and 19, respectively, with a relatively straightforward path to victory, as they easily got to their revised target of 157 with 55 balls to spare.
“With the new ball, [Brandon] King and I always say once we see what the new ball does, it becomes so much easier scoring deep into the innings. So I just tried to be positive after the powerplay and bat as deep as possible,” Lewis said in an interview with CWI media.
“It is very nice to bat with Brandon King; he is also a positive player like me, and we feed off each other. We have some good partnerships going so far and are looking forward to continuing that going forward,” he added.
Lewis, known for his aggressive style, struck 94 off just 69 balls, including eight sixes and five fours, giving the Antiguan crowd much to celebrate as the rain failed to dampen their spirits.
Now looking to the second ODI, Lewis emphasized the importance of carrying their positive energy forward as they aim to seal the series by taking an unassailable 2-0 lead.
“I think we just have to keep playing the cricket we are playing and be positive in what we are doing. It is important to try and win the second game so that we can close out the series. We have the support from the coaching staff, so we just have to go out there and execute,” the aggressive left-handed batsman noted.
With his confidence high and his approach focused, the Trinidad and Tobago stalwart remains one to watch as West Indies continue to progress as a team.
Knowing his role is pivotal in guiding the West Indies to victory once again, much like he did with a well-played century in the last game of their Sri Lankan tour, Lewis’ sights are set on keeping his form intact.
“I was pretty confident coming into this series after that century against Sri Lanka, and I am even more confident after getting off the mark in the series, and it is important that I keep scoring runs,” he ended.
Oscar Piastri explained he would be willing to follow team orders to help out Lando Norris in his championship battle after claiming pole position for the Sprint at the Brazil Grand Prix.
Piastri surged to the front row for Saturday's Sprint, edging McLaren team-mate Norris in the final moments, after the Briton had led proceedings throughout.
Norris was pipped by two hundredths of a second, though is in prime position to close the gap to Max Verstappen in the drivers' standings.
Verstappen finished fourth, but is set to face a five-place grid drop for Sunday's race after Red Bull elected to change his power unit for the sixth time this season.
Norris is currently 47 points behind the Dutchman in the drivers' championship, with this weekend offering the perfect opportunity for him to close the gap at the summit.
Despite his impressive effort, Piastri confirmed that the team is his priority, and he will focus on their overall result before they switch attention to the grand prix on Sunday.
“We’ll see what the pace is like for both of us tomorrow. I think first and second is the first objective, and then we’ll see what order it is," Piastri told Sky Sports.
“I know that I’m not in the running for the drivers’ standings and for the team, it doesn’t matter which way around we are. I know that’s the case and we’ll see.”
Quizzed further on whether he would give up the win outright, he added: “Yes. I’ve said I would from when we first had these discussions.
"It would be nice to win, but it’s one point difference, and it’s not the main race so we’ll see.
“Lando needs the points in the drivers’ standings a lot more than I do, but of course I still want to win.
"So if I put in the effort and have good pace, I’m sure that won’t go unnoticed, but let’s see.”
Charles Leclerc completed the top three for Saturday's sprint, with Verstappen just behind, while Carlos Sainz, the winner at the Mexican Grand Prix last weekend, took fifth.
Mercedes' George Russell came in sixth, while the Alpine of Pierre Gasly finished seventh.
Liam Lawson, Alex Albon and Ollie Bearman, who replaced the unwell Kevin Magnussen at Haas for the Sprint, rounded out the top 10.
The Jamaica Golf Association (JGA) launched the prestigious 57th Jamaica Open Golf Championship on Thursday at the Constant Spring Golf Club in Kingston.
The championship will be held at the picturesque Tryall Golf Club in Hanover for the fifth consecutive year from November 10 to 12 while the pro-am tournament is scheduled for November 9 with an 8:30 am start.
It will feature the majority of the pros and the amateurs playing in teams, to share skills, generate camaraderie and introduce the course to the overseas based golfers.
Sixty players from United States of America (USA), Canada, Trinidad & Tobago, Bermuda, and host country Jamaica have completed their registration already, including the defending champion, professional Andrew Arft of the USA.
The playing format will be stroke play, 18 holes each day for a total of 54 holes.
“We are expecting a very successful event. Based on the entries so far, we have surpassed last year’s numbers. The difficulty we had with this tournament in terms of entries was from the pandemic, the numbers have been rising but have not gotten back to the level that they were,” said organizing committee chairman Peter Chin.
“We are hopeful every year to increase the prize money because that is what attracts the top professional golfers. The prize money this year if we have a full field is US$110,000,” added Chin.
The honouree for this year’s event is Johnny Bloomfield who won the Jamaica Open three times.
JGA president Jodi Munn-Barrow expounded on the choice of Bloomfield as honouree.
“Johnny is the only one to win three consecutive Jamaica Opens on two different golf courses. He won his first one at Caymanas (2006) and then the last two (2008 and 2009) at Half Moon Golf Course when we had it at Half Moon. So that itself is a feat. Seymour Rose is another three-time winner but not consecutively so we thought it was just right to award him as the honouree this year for that feat.”
She said that the Tryall Golf Course was “excellent as usual."
"I got word from them that they are ready to go. The superintendent is on top of the preparations. The rough will be grown in again like last year so it will make it a little bit more difficult for the pros and the amateurs but Tryall is challenging on its own and if the wind comes up it will be even much harder so I think Tryall is the perfect spot for championships such as the Jamaica Open.”
Two of the sponsors, Tourism Enhancement Fund and Sports Development Foundation were represented by Dr. Carey Wallace and Alan Beckford respectively. They endorsed the open.
Wallace, executive director of TEF said “golf tourism is of course an important diamond amongst diamonds that we have here in Jamaica and so investing in this tournament which is an international tournament, in fact it is the number one international tournament here in Jamaica for golf. We believe that it is necessary for us to support the outstanding associations, stakeholders that are putting it together for them to have the resources to take it to higher levels.”
Beckford, the SDF’s general manager said “the Sports Development Foundation has historically supported the sport of golf and it goes more than just supporting the golf federation. We also have had a summer camp that we have supported in collaboration with Insports and we have had this camp for a number of years where we have students from the community around Caymanas Golf Course coming out to participate in the camp. We have sponsored a pro-am tournament a couple of years as well too so we see golf to be a very important sport among the sports in Jamaica. We think it’s an excellent sport and we wish them the best with this tournament.”
Aqua Bay Resort returns as presenting sponsor for the fifth consecutive year. The major sponsors include the TEF, Tryall, JTB, Jamaica Tours, Grand Palladium, SDF and Vybwear while the product sponsors are Wata, Juici Patties, Café Blue, Honey Bun and Rainforest.
Girona head coach Michel insisted that his side will rediscover the form that earned them Champions League football last season once their injured players return.
Girona find themselves 13th in the LaLiga standings after 11 games this season, but have been hit with several injuries to a plethora of first-team starters.
The likes of Oriol Romeu, Jhon Solis, Portu, Yaser Asprilla, Ivan Martin, Abel Ruiz, Viktor Tsygankov, Pau Lopez, Cristhian Stuani and Yangel Herrera have all missed significant amounts of game time already this term.
Michel, however, is expected to welcome Romeu, Stuani and Herrera back into the side for the visit of Leganes, who are one place below them in the table.
But the Girona head coach insisted he would not rush players back into first-team action, but is hoping to welcome more of his injury absentees back for their Champions League clash with PSV Eindhoven next week.
"I am a realistic person and I look ahead. I have no doubt that when the injured recover, the team will be fine and will play well," Michel said.
"I can't predict what people think. We will be a competitive team that can beat anyone.
"Stuani, Romeu and Herrera are back. Jastin and Tsygankov are not far away and Lopez might be available for Tuesday's (Champions League) game against PSV.
"You have players who are close to returning, but we want them to recover well and to be really ready..."
Girona are without a win in consecutive games in LaLiga, but did get themselves a much-needed victory in the Copa del Rey, sweeping aside CD Extremadura 4-0.
And that will give them confidence of returning to winning ways in the league, and they boast an impressive record against this weekend's opponents.
They have not lost any of their four matches against Leganes in the league (W2 D2), keeping a clean sheet in all of them.
Nuri Sahin confirmed that Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel will miss their upcoming Bundesliga fixture with RB Leipzig this weekend.
Kobel, who has kept four clean sheets in 13 appearances in all competitions this season, sustained a hip injury in Tuesday's DFB Pokal defeat to Wolfsburg.
The Switzerland international becomes the latest name to be sidelined for Dortmund, who have failed to win their last three games in all competitions.
Sahin is already without Karim Adeyemi, Julien Duranville, Gio Reyna, Kjell Watjen, Niklas Sule, Julian Ryerson, and Yan Couto, among others.
"Clearly it is a difficult situation with the defeats and the Cup exit, a competition we had high expectations for," Sahin told a press conference.
"The injury list with this squad is extremely bitter. With Greg (Kobel) out now we have 10 players out.
"Ten players injured. That's something I have not experienced before. How do we get out of it? We won't hide behind excuses. The lads are well prepared."
Dortmund come into the encounter after earning 13 points from their first eight games, their worst start to a Bundesliga season since 2014-15.
Sahin's struggles have been away from home in the league this term, failing to win any of their five games while also conceding 10 goals during those matches.
But they have won each of their last eight home games in all competitions, their longest run since between November 2022 and May 2023 (11).
Dortmund are the only team yet to drop a point at home in the Bundesliga this season (four home wins) and have collected 12 of their 13 points at the Westfalenstadion.
And Sahin is confident that their run on home soil will help them stop their current losing streak.
"We are well prepared and we play at home. And at home it is difficult to beat us," Sahin said.
"I know my role and the players know their roles. We have to go through this. We have to work our way out of this situation."
"We need the stadium tomorrow more than ever. I'm sure the stadium will have a feel for our situation. We want to continue our home streak."
However, Dortmund have lost six of their last seven competitive games against RB Leipzig, with their only win coming in a 2-1 victory in the 2022-23 campaign.
They had previously gone on an eight-match unbeaten run against Die Roten Bullen in all competitions (W6, D2).
Antonio Conte insisted that Napoli's chances of a Scudetto triumph in his first season in charge required more work rather than prayers.
Napoli are top of the pile in Serie A, with their 2-0 win over Milan in midweek putting them four points ahead of defending champions Inter in the early season standings.
It's a remarkable turnaround from last term, with Napoli finishing 10th in their Scudetto defence, seeing both Rudi Garcia and Walter Mazzarri lose their jobs.
After Conte started his Napoli tenure with a 3-0 defeat to Hellas Verona on the opening day of the season, they have gone undefeated in their next nine games.
That includes winning the last five league games in a row for the first time since a run of eight under Luciano Spalletti between January and February 2023.
This season, only Barcelona (10) have won more games than Napoli (eight) across the top five European leagues, though Conte was reserved when asked about his team's chances of winning the title.
"I am a man of faith, even practically, and I know only one person who performs them," Conte told a press conference.
"I always pray, even for the team, that they are well. In addition to my family, there is also a prayer for the players.
"We must work, all of us, from the cook and the kit man to create something beautiful that can give extra points in a championship.
"We cannot make any mistakes in this, we are not in a position to make mistakes.
"Then, football miracles have always happened, but you have to work to hope it happens, it's not enough to pray."
Napoli welcome Atalanta to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, with Conte aiming to become the first coach in the club's history to win each of his first six home games in Serie A.
Since 2022, Napoli have won four of their five league meetings against Atalanta. In this period, Gian Piero Gasperini's side have only lost more games to Inter (D1 L5).
But Atalanta have impressed under Gasperini, winning the Europa League last season with a 3-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the final.
Gasperini finished behind Luis de la Fuente, Xabi Alonso and winner Carlo Ancelotti for the Men's Johan Cruyff Trophy, an accolade given to football's best coach last season at Monday's Ballon d'Or ceremony.
Conte was full of praise for his opposite number, however, saying: "They have been in the Champions League for years, it is a team that today must be counted among the strongest, without a doubt.
"Credit to the club, to Gasperini, who has done an extraordinary job in all these years, and I have great respect for Gian Piero.
"When I played at Juventus he was coach of the youth team.
"I respect him a lot. Through hard work, he has achieved results. You don't win the Europa League if you are not strong."
Vincent Kompany said he would wait until Saturday to decide whether Eric Dier and Dayot Upamecano are fit enough to return to action for Bayern Munich.
Bayern welcome Union Berlin to the Allianz Arena, hoping to maintain their advantage over RB Leipzig at the summit of the Bundesliga standings.
Both Dier and Upamecano are nursing injuries, with the former Tottenham defender replaced by Arijon Ibrahimovic in Bayern's DFB-Pokal win over Mainz in midweek.
Upamecano also missed the trip to the Mewa Arena with a thigh injury, only adding to the defensive woes Kompany has suffered this season.
Bayern are already without Hiroki Ito, Sacha Boey and Josip Stanisic, but Kompany is yet to make a decision on Dier and Upamecano's role in Saturday's fixture.
"It's a pity when players are unavailable. I have 18 fit players, so I have 18 options for the positions," Kompany told a press conference.
"There have obviously been a lot of games in the last few weeks. I have full confidence in the other boys and in the squad."
"The tendency (for Dier and Upamecano) is good but still I will take my time until tomorrow. But it looks good."
During their win over Mainz on Wednesday, Kompany was forced to play a central defensive partnership made up of Leon Goretzka and Konrad Laimer.
And the Bayern boss was not against starting that same duo against Union Berlin this weekend after their strong showing in the DFB-Pokal.
"I could say it is bad for us with two, three or four defenders missing," Kompany added.
"But I have full faith in the other players. I hope they will be fit but in any other case I have faith in the other lads."
Kompany has collected 20 points in his first eight Bundesliga games as Bayern head coach, the best return since Carlo Ancelotti in 2016.
No coach in top-flight history has seen his side score as many goals in their first eight games as Kompany (29), and the Belgian has reason to be confident this weekend.
They have not lost any of their 10 league meetings with Union Berlin (W7, D3) – the only other side Bayern have faced as often in the top-flight without losing is Darmstadt.
However, Kompany was wary of the threat Bo Svensson's side, who have picked up 15 points after eight Bundesliga games – only ever being better off in 2022-23 (17).
"They have done it well so far. They are up there and we will not be underestimating them. But the game is about us," Kompany said.
"You can see that they are very strong in defence and on the counter. This is a team that knows what it has to do. But in the end it is a home game for us."
Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek are once again embroiled in a tussle for the year-end number one spot in the WTA rankings.
Last year, Swiatek finished as the year-end number one, with a flawless display at the 2023 WTA Finals in Cancun seeing her top Sabalenka, who had been in pole position.
Sabalenka will be out to avoid a similar fate this time around, with the WTA Finals moving to Riyadh.
Here, we preview the key storylines ahead of the tournament.
Sabalenka and Swiatek go head-to-head... again
It has been a fantastic season for both of these players, who have proved their credentials as the standout duo on the WTA Tour.
Sabalenka has scooped two grand slam titles, triumphing at the Australian Open and the US Open.
Swiatek, meanwhile, won the French Open and collected bronze at Roland-Garros at the Paris Olympics. Between them, the pair have won nine Tour-level titles in 2024.
Sabalenka will guarantee her place at the top of the world heading into 2025 should she win her three group-stage matches in Riyadh.
The Belarusian takes on Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen, world number five Elena Rybakina and Jasmine Paolini, this year's Wimbledon and French Open runner-up, in her group.
Sabalenka is the first player to make successive WTA Finals appearances as the number one since Serena Williams in 2013 and 2014.
The 26-year-old has reeled off 46 match wins across grand slams and WTA 1000 events this year, which is one more than Swiatek (45).
Swiatek, on the other hand, has Coco Gauff, US Open runner-up Jessica Pegula and Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova to contend with.
Since the reintroduction of the round-robin format in 2003, Swiatek has conceded the fewest games of any player to win the WTA Finals, dropping only 20 games en route to the title last year - breaking Williams' record of 32 from 2012.
Swiatek downed Pegula in last year's final, and dropped just a single game. That made her the player to concede the fewest games in a WTA Finals title match. Martina Navratilova (1983) and Kim Clijsters (2003) previously shared the record, conceding two games in respective finals.
She is also one of only two players, along with Williams, to win the tournament without dropping a set since the tournament's format was altered 21 years ago.
Swiatek could become the first player to win the WTA Finals on consecutive occasions as the second seed. Among this year's qualifiers, the 23-year-old (75%, 9-3) holds the highest winning percentage at the WTA Finals.
Since 2003, the Pole is, however, the only top seed to win all three group matches and not reach the final at that year's WTA Finals, losing to Sabalenka in their semi-final in 2022.
The key insights for the other contenders
Since 2003, Gauff (2022-2024) is only the second player to reach three consecutive editions of the WTA Finals before turning 21, after Maria Sharapova (2004-2007).
Gauff is aiming to become the fourth American to win the WTA Finals before turning 21 after Chris Evert (1972, 1973 and 1975), Tracy Austin (1980) and Williams (2001).
Paolini has had a fine year, and will become only the fourth Italian to appear at the WTA Finals after Francesca Schiavone (2010), Sara Errani (2012, 2013) and Flavia Pennetta (2015).
At the age of 28 years and 303 days, she will become the second-oldest player to make their maiden WTA Finals appearance as a top-five ranked player, after Li Na (29 years and 241 days) in 2011 – since the WTA rankings were first published in 1975. Paolini (18) won the joint-most matches at grand slam events in 2024, along with Sabalenka.
Meanwhile, only Swiatek (five) and Sabalenka (four) have won more WTA-level titles in 2024 than Rybakina (three).
At the age of 30 years and 258 days on the day of the final, Pegula could become the oldest maiden-winner of the WTA Finals since the event’s inauguration in 1972, surpassing Jana Novotna (29 years and 52 days) in 1997.
In Cancun last year, Pegula became the first player to face the WTA's top four players at a single event, since the rankings were first published in 1975.
Since the event's inauguration in 1972, Zheng will become only the second player from China to appear at the WTA Finals after Li Na (2011-2013).
Excluding alternates, Krejcikova (13) will be the first player ranked outside the WTA's top 10 to appear at the WTA Finals since Vera Zvonareva (11) in 2004.
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