Julian Nagelsmann is keen to keep in-demand defender Benjamin Pavard at Bayern Munich after he scored twice in the Bundesliga leaders' thrilling 5-3 win over Augsburg on Saturday.
Mergim Berisha opened the scoring for Augsburg early on, but Bayern surged into a 4-1 lead by the break as Joao Cancelo and Leroy Sane struck either side of Pavard's brace.
While Berisha sealed his own double after the interval and Irvin Cardona also netted late on, Alphonso Davies' goal ensured Bayern sealed a fourth successive win in relative comfort.
Last November, Pavard discussed the possibility of leaving Bayern for a new project, and with the France international's contract due to expire next year, he has been linked with Barcelona, Inter and Manchester United.
Having seen the 26-year-old mark his 150th competitive Bayern outing with his first double for the club, Nagelsmann said: "Of course I want to keep Benjamin at Bayern.
"Playing in that position that he loves as a centre-back… he played very well today. So yes, I'd love to keep him."
Despite seeing Augsburg put to the sword in a typically ruthless Bayern performance, Nagelsmann was not impressed with some aspects of the hosts' display.
"I'm happy with the result. It's job done today, that was important," Nagelsmann said.
"It was very similar to the game in the DFB-Pokal against Augsburg [a 5-2 win in October], it was a bit chaotic right from the start. We conceded the goal right away.
"Then we played really well for 30 minutes, everything was done well on our offensive side. In the second half, we did not have as much control or pressure any more.
"The game was a little bit too open in my opinion, we could have scored a couple more goals, but the result is above everything.
"Not everything was perfect on the offensive or defensive side, but all in all, it's all about the three points."
Glenmuir stay perfect in Zone I of daCosta Cup after 2-0 win over neighbours Garvey Maceo
Glenmuir High extended their perfect start to the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA)/Wata daCosta Cup as they blanked neighbours Garvey Maceo 2-0 in a lopsided Zone I affair in May Pen, Clarendon, on Saturday.
Ricardo Binns’ third goal of the season in the 29th and Orel Miller’s seventh of the season in the 40th was enough to seal the three points, which kept Glenmuir atop the standings on maximum nine points.
The defeat, Garvey Maceo’s first of the season, saw them slip to third on six points as Foga Road (seven points) jumped to second after a 6-0 beating of Porus High.
Glenmuir’s Head coach Andrew Peart welcomed the win.
“I am pleased with the win and the maturity shown by the players. For most of them its three years so as they get older, you expect more of them and I thought they showed that. One of the key things for us was not to get the game stretched and I thought we did that well,” Peart said in a post-game interview.
“It is step by step where our title ambitions are concerned; for us, the main thing now is to get out of the group and then we go from there. Yes, we plan long term but we are working short term so its day by day for us right now,” he added.
It was expected to be a close contest between two of last season’s semi-finalists, but Glenmuir had other ideas and should have won by a wider margin.
The Champions Cup holders dominated proceedings from the start as they were enterprising in the attacking third and created numerous chances, though they struggled to apply the finishing touch.
It wasn’t until close to the half-hour mark that they inevitably broke the deadlock from a sustained attacking spell, when Binns headed into an empty net after a decent first touch kept the ball alive ahead of the advancing Garfield Tomlinson in goal for Garvey Maceo.
The lead was doubled 11 minutes later courtesy of Miller, who sidewined his way through four defenders before driving a firm left-footed effort past the hapless Tomlinson to make it 2-0 at the break.
Down, but not out, Garvey Maceo showed more purpose on the attacking front on the resumption and created a few half chances, which amounted to nothing.
From there, the contest offered very little to write home about as Glenmuir showed very little in attack, seemingly content with what they already had, while Garvey Maceo did little to trouble their opponents defensive line.
Garvey Maceo’s head coach Lester Hibbert believes indiscipline led to their demise.
“We gave them instructions to stay with their markers because Glenmuir was doing a lot of movements. When we started the game, we kept them behind the ball but we lost the discipline and conceded two goals, so we just have to brush ourselves off and come again for the next game on Wednesday,” Hibbert said.
Saturday’s results
Vere Technical 0, Kemps Hill 2
Glenmuir 2, Garvey Maceo 0
Foga Road 6, Porus 0
William Knibb 5, Holland 0
Maggotty High 1, Newell 0
Mannings 9, Godfrey Stewart 0
Alston 1, Troy 0
Herbert Morrison 3, St James 0
Anchovy 1, Rusea’s High 0
B.B Coke 1, Munro College 0
Lennon 0, Clarendon College 2
Irwin High 3, Green Pond High 3
Spot Valley 2, Cedric Titus 0
Port Antonio 2, Wycliffe Martin High 0
Grange Hill 1, Black River 2
Maldon 0, Cornwall College 1
Real Sociedad 0-2 Real Madrid: Vinicius, Mbappe penalties close gap on Barca
Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe both scored penalties as Real Madrid saw off Real Sociedad 2-0 at the Reale Arena.
Carlo Ancelotti's side moved to within a point of LaLiga leaders Barcelona, who visit fifth-place Girona on Sunday.
Already without the likes of Jude Bellingham, David Alaba, Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni, Madrid suffered another injury blow in the 24th minute when Brahim Diaz was forced off with a muscular issue.
After a goalless first half, the visitors broke through 13 minutes after the restart with Vinicius slotting home from 12 yards after Sergio Gomez handled Arda Guler's shot.
Vinicus was then felled for Madrid's second penalty, which was awarded following a VAR review, with Mbappe making no mistake in sealing all three points.
Data Debrief: Madrid extend unbeaten streak
Extending their unbeaten LaLiga streak to 37 matches, Madrid have now won four successive away league games against Basque opposition for the first time since a run of four such victories between 2011 and 2013.
By contrast, Sociedad have now suffered four straight home defeats in the Spanish top flight for the first time since 2007.
Flick confident Barcelona can topple impressive Girona
Hansi Flick is confident Barcelona have what it takes to beat local rivals Girona and avenge last season's two defeats in the Catalan derby.
Flick, whose Barcelona reign has started with four consecutive victories, enjoyed watching Girona last season as they took LaLiga by storm, going toe-to-toe with Real Madrid in the title race and reaching the Champions League for the first time.
But despite heaping praise on rival manager Michel's work after he led them to a third-place finish, Flick said there will be no sympathy when they step on the pitch.
"We've won four games in a row, and we have to keep going," Flick told a press conference on Saturday.
"I know it will be complicated because Girona play really well. It's a match at the highest level, Champions League level, and we're playing away. But we are confident because we have quality.
"Last season I watched Girona a lot, and I was really impressed by what the coach did and how the players responded.
"But we know how we have to play, and I'm sure the players will deliver. We must not look back. What happened, happened. The key on Sunday is that all our players give their best out there."
Barcelona are top of the standings with 12 points, five above fifth-placed Girona, who are coming off solid wins against Osasuna and Sevilla.
Flick said his team needed to make Girona uncomfortable and dominate possession against an exciting attacking side, who won 4-2 in both LaLiga games against Barca last term.
"We know that Girona's strength is having the ball. We have to press well, defend as a block, stay well positioned and not give them any space," Flick added.
"It will be a tactical battle, but we want the ball and, if we have it, we have a good chance of winning. It will be a good test for us, it will be like a Champions League match."
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