Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer revealed he has previously been treated for skin cancer and underwent three operations on his face.

Neuer has joined forces with three-time tennis grand slam champion Angelique Kerber to release a skincare range called 'Newkee' and revealed the personal reasons for his involvement.

The 36-year-old had not previously disclosed the medical information, with the timeframe remaining unclear on the operation, though he was pictured last year playing with bandaging over his face.

"We both have a very personal history of skin diseases. In Angelique's case it's sun-related hyperpigmentation," the Germany veteran said in a press release launching the skincare range.

"In my case it's skin cancer on my face, which I've already had to have operated on three times."

Neuer has not featured for Bayern since October 8 due to a shoulder injury, but could be fit for the Bundesliga trip to Hertha Berlin on Saturday.

His return would prove a welcome boost for Germany, whose World Cup campaign starts against Japan in 21 days, as Hansi Flick's side aim for global glory in Qatar.

Bayern trail unlikely leaders Union Berlin by a point at the Bundesliga summit, with three games left to play before the break for the World Cup.

Sven Ulreich is enjoying one of those rare spells where everyone at Bayern Munich depends on his safe hands, and the loyal deputy to Manuel Neuer hopes this will not prove to be his final season at the club.

The 34-year-old goalkeeper – two years Neuer's junior – has played second fiddle to the Germany great throughout his time at Bayern.

This is Ulreich's seventh season with the Bundesliga champions, with his Bayern career broken up by one year away at Hamburg in 2020-21, where he spent a campaign as a first-team regular, albeit in Germany's second tier.

Ulreich was a Bayern mainstay in the 2017-18 season, but that was only because Neuer fractured a foot, keeping him out for almost the entire campaign.

The former Stuttgart number one has been a dutiful Bayern stand-in when called upon, as he has been in recent weeks with Neuer sidelined by a shoulder problem. Head coach Julian Nagelsmann last week said he has "a lot of trust" in his second choice.

On Tuesday in Milan, Ulreich was due to face Inter in the Champions League, making an eighth appearance of the season. Given Neuer is back in training and on the comeback trail, Ulreich may not get a ninth game for some time.

With Ulreich entering the final months of his Bayern contract, he is hoping there could be an extension in the offing. Recent first-team exposure should help his cause, with Bayern having won every game where he has featured so far this term, going into the Inter game.

"I've always said that I'm having fun and enjoying myself here," Ulreich told Sky Sport Germany. "I think we'll talk about it at some point. It's still too early, but I can very well imagine staying here.

"I'll be 35 next year. There won't be too much coming. But I'm not thinking about the end of my career just yet. I still plan to play for two years.

"As long as you're healthy and having fun, you should play on and you shouldn't say no. I'm currently healthy and fit."

Manuel Neuer and Lucas Hernandez were back in Bayern Munich training on Monday, with their respective hopes of being fit for the World Cup seemingly receiving a boost.

Bayern captain Neuer had been struggling with a shoulder injury that forced him to miss six games, but he returned to goalkeeper training ahead of Tuesday's Champions League clash with Inter.

As recently as last week Nagelsmann did not want to commit to Neuer being ready to feature for Germany at the World Cup, saying he is not a "mystic".

But he appears hopeful of being able to call upon the 36-year-old away to Hertha Berlin on Saturday.

"We hope he'll be available again for the weekend. He came through training well and didn't show any reaction. But we'll have to wait and see," Nagelsmann told reporters.

Tuesday's game will also come too soon for Hernandez, not that the match has much riding on it – Bayern and Inter are already confirmed as Group C winners and runners-up respectively.

However, the France international is close to a return to action after suffering an adductor tear in September, with Monday seeing him take part in full team training.

Thomas Muller remains sidelined for the time being as well.

The Germany attacker has struggled lately with a hip issue, and Nagelsmann accepts he may not even be available to face Hertha.

"We'll reduce Thomas's workload this week and see how things are for the weekend," Nagelsmann said.

"But I'm leaning more towards him not being back at the weekend."

Matthijs de Ligt is a new name to be added to the injury list for Tuesday with a minor knee injury, leaving Nagelsmann's squad down to its bare bones as they look to end the group stage with maximum points.

"We will have to rotate a bit because we have some injured players who shouldn't play more than 45 minutes," he added.

"Nevertheless, we want to win the game. Anyone can show themselves. It's still a Champions League game and 18 points would be nice."

However, Nagelsmann suggested he will not give chances to youngsters who do not deserve an opportunity as he bemoaned the Under-19s' Youth League elimination after winning none of their first five group games.

"We'll take everyone but we'll see [on Tuesday] whether [youngsters] get chances," he continued.

"In general, I'm a friend of the fact that you have to earn success. You have to develop your genes, which is particularly important for young players at FC Bayern Munich.

"Success is part of a good education. You're doomed to win here at the club, so it's a shame we were eliminated so early in the Youth League.

"At FC Bayern, you always have to be the best in the youth teams so that the step-up to the pros isn't so big."

Toni Kroos has enjoyed one of the most garlanded careers in world football, but on Sunday he finally collected something rather less treasured than his many medals: a red card.

In his 634th competitive top-flight game at club level, Kroos was dismissed for the first time as Real Madrid were held 1-1 by Girona at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The Germany international had already been booked when he cynically fouled Aleix Garcia as Girona looked to break at speed in stoppage time.

That meant the 32-year-old had to go, with referee Mario Melero Lopez ordering him off.

Kroos played at the highest level in Germany for Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen, where he had an 18-month loan spell early in his career.

After making his Bundesliga debut in 2007 and gradually developing into a Bayern star performer, Kroos was signed up by Madrid in July 2014, days after helping his national team win the World Cup.

He has won the Champions League five times, landed three Bundesliga titles and three LaLiga crowns, and added five Club World Cup wins.

That is just scratching the surface, with Kroos scoring 59 goals and adding 130 assists while prompting skilfully from midfield.

The 634-game total consists of all competitions, including Kroos playing 253 times in LaLiga, 173 games in the Bundesliga, and 132 matches in the Champions League.

Kroos was not entirely a stranger to referees over that time, but they had always held off showing him red. He had totted up 84 bookings before Lopez decided the moment had arrived for an early bath.

Julian Nagelsmann is finding his Bayern Munich side "fun to watch" after they hammered Mainz 6-2 to go top of the Bundesliga on Saturday.

The ruthless Bavarian giants extended their winning streak to six matches by putting Mainz to the sword at the Allianz Arena following a 3-0 midweek victory at Barcelona in the Champions League.

Bayern had six different goalscorers for only the third time in a Bundesliga match, with Mainz the opponents in two of those games, the other occasion being in August 2019.

Serge Gnabry, Jamal Musiala and Sadio Mane were on target in a first half that ended with Silvan Widmer pulling a goal back just after Sven Ulreich saved a Jonathan Burkardt penalty.

Leon Goretzka, Mathys Tel and the in-form Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting were on target in the second half, with Marcus Ingvartsen scoring Mainz's second goal after a mistake from Ulrich.

That is now a staggering 39 goals Bayern have scored in a nine-match unbeaten run, moving them above Union Berlin at the summit, and head coach Nagelsmann is lapping up the entertainment.

He said: "I think we had difficult five to 10 minutes at the beginning of the first and second half. Otherwise we did really well.

"Big compliment to the team for performing this way every three days. It's fun to watch – a mix of quality and attitude. Compliments to my players."

Mane and Musiala caused Mainz all sort of problems as Bayern came forward with wave after wave of attacks.

Nagelsmann praised big-money signing Mane, who has already scored 11 goals in his first season for the club.

He said: "I'm happy with Sadio Mane's performance. The development of the past two weeks was good because of his position.

"He plays more on the wing where he played at Liverpool. He did well today, like he did in Barcelona and hopefully will continue this way."

Manuel Neuer and Thomas Muller – pillars of the Germany national team over the last decade – are battling to prove their fitness with barely three weeks remaining until the World Cup begins.

Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann confirmed in a press conference on Friday that neither player will be fit enough to feature in Saturday's Bundesliga game against Mainz.

Goalkeeper Neuer remains troubled by a shoulder issue, while attacking midfielder Muller has a hip problem, and Nagelsmann could not say with conviction when both will be back in club action.

The news will inevitably be a worry for Germany boss Hansi Flick, as the former Bayern head coach finalises his plans for the Qatar 2022 finals.

Muller played for half an hour as a substitute in Bayern's 3-0 win at Barcelona on Wednesday, but the 33-year-old will not be risked at all against Mainz, and almost certainly will also sit out the Champions League meeting with Inter next Tuesday.

"He has irritation in his hip again, in the pelvic area," Nagelsmann said. "He won't be able to play, probably not even on Tuesday. We'll probably have to take him out for a week to give him a break.

"Thomas is in good spirits. We talked to a couple of medical professionals yesterday and tried to get a better picture of everything, but the picture didn't really change.

"It's not something that goes away with pain medication either. It feels blocked, and it's difficult to define how the pain is manifesting itself. I decided it would be better just to take him out of action for the time being.

"[Saturday] is the type of game where even for 10 or 15 minutes you have to give absolutely everything, so if we give him that 10 or 15 minutes, he's ultimately going to have to drop out potentially for the next game. We've got to see how it develops and how it reacts.

"The key right now is instead of blindly testing it out constantly, to give it a bit of calm and see how it reacts to that and then see how his recovery goes."

Neuer, the 36-year-old captain of Bayern and Germany, has played no active part since Bayern's 2-2 draw at Borussia Dortmund on October 8.

It is obvious to Nagelsmann that having Neuer fit is not only a priority for Bayern but a matter of national interest.

There are no promises at the moment, but Nagelsmann is hoping Neuer may be able to return next weekend at Hertha Berlin.

"I'm not a mystic that can see into the future," Nagelsmann said. "We put him in the game against Dortmund and maybe that was a game too early, and now he's sat out a couple of games.

"It's very difficult for me to know how the pain will be managed. It's a structural area of the body that needs time to heal and a joint that needs a bit of calm as well, so if you're constantly testing it and putting a burden on it, it can be tough.

"I'm anticipating he will be ready for the World Cup, but I'm not a psychic. We're going to do everything we can to help him be there for the World Cup."

Bayern are the hosts on Saturday against a Mainz team who led at the Allianz Arena last season before slipping to a 2-1 defeat.

However, Mainz have beaten Bayern twice in the past two seasons, both times when having home advantage.

Among sides currently in the top flight, only Augsburg have also taken six points from their last three matches against Bayern – no teams have managed more.

Heading into this meeting, Bayern and Mainz have both won their last two games, each scoring seven goals and conceding none – a league high in this timeframe.

Mainz are also top of the away form table this season with 12 points from six away games, marking them down as a threat.

Bayern nevertheless head into the weekend programme just one point behind early leaders Union Berlin, who must wait until Sunday before tackling Borussia Monchengladbach.

"We're in a good rhythm right now," said Nagelsmann. "Against Barcelona, we looked like a solid unit who all had the same goal in mind. The team have a great connection with one another."

Lautaro Martinez dismissed speculation over a move to Bayern Munich or Paris Saint-Germain, stating he hopes to "become a legend" at Inter.

Chelsea, Bayern and PSG are among a host of Europe's elite clubs that have repeatedly been linked to the forward, who will aim for World Cup glory with Argentina in November.

Julian Nagelsmann's side remain on the hunt for a like-for-like replacement for Robert Lewandowski, while Martinez's Argentina team-mate Lionel Messi could draw the Inter star to the French capital.

However, Martinez refuted reports of a move away from San Siro as he outlined his long-term ambitions with Inter.

"I'm fine, I'm happy here," Martinez told Rai Sport. "I hope I can become a legend, I have a contract here and I only think about Inter. 

"There are many goals from now on and we hope to continue like this."

Martinez scored 21 goals in 35 Serie A appearances as Inter finished second to rivals Milan last season, though he endured a lean spell in front of goal at the start of this campaign.

The 25-year-old failed to find the net in five straight league games but ended that poor form with a strike against Sassuolo on Wednesday, before a brace and an assist against Fiorentina on Saturday.

A dramatic 4-3 victory over Fiorentina – courtesy of Henrikh Mkhitaryan's fortuitous winner – lifted Inter to seventh in Serie A, but the Nerazzurri still sit five points behind leaders Napoli, who have a game in hand.

Franck Ribery's playing career has come to an end.

On Friday, the former France and Bayern Munich winger announced his retirement at the age of 39, having agreed to terminate his deal with Serie A club Salernitana.

He signed for Salernitana ahead of last season, though for the first time since the 2004-05 season, failed to score in the league.

His sole Serie A appearance this season came in a 1-0 defeat to Roma back in August, as a second-half substitute, and in truth it was no surprise when rumours recently emerged of his imminent retirement.

There can be no doubt, however, that Ribery will go down as one of European football's greats of the modern era.

In 2013, Ribery was nominated for the Ballon d'Or, finishing third in the voting behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Falling short against two of the best to play the game is no shame, and using Opta data, here are some of the key facts from Ribery's glittering career.

Ligue 1 breakthrough

Having made a name for himself with Brest in Ligue 2, Ribery was recruited by Metz in 2004. He spent only half a season there and scored just one goal before joining Turkish giants Galatasaray, yet he made a big impact, with comparisons drawn to one of the club's greatest exports, Robert Pires.

His only goal in Turkey came in the Turkish Cup final against Gala's great rivals Fenerbahce, in a 5-1 victory. Having claimed his first trophy, Ribery headed home to France, signing for Marseille.

It was a messy move, with FIFA ultimately ruling in Ribery's favour after the player claimed he had not been paid his wages by Gala, as well as alleging to have been threatened by his former agent and a club director. 

Ribery spent two seasons with Marseille and became a star, being named the National Union of Professional Footballers' (UNFP) Young Player of the Year in 2006. 

His performances at the 2006 World Cup (more on that later) only increased his profile, with Marseille seeing off interest from Real Madrid, Arsenal and, controversially, rivals Lyon to keep hold of Ribery.

That decision paid off for OM. In his final campaign in France, in 2006-07, Ribery provided eight assists, behind only Nancy's Benjamin Gavanon (nine), and had the highest tally of chances created per 90 minutes (2.95) among players who had featured for over 100 minutes across the season.

Marseille finished second, after losing in the final of the Coupe de France, and Ribery was named the French Player of the Year by France Football.

Flourishing for France

Ribery made his debut for Les Bleus in May 2006, ahead of the World Cup in Germany, where he truly made his name as a superstar.

Between making his debut and playing his final international match in March 2014, Ribery featured in more France games than any other player (81) in the same period, 11 ahead of second-ranked Florent Malouda.

Indeed, his 37 goal involvements (16 goals, 21 assists) was more than any other French player, and puts him sixth on the nation's goal involvements list in the 21st century.

He helped France reach the final of the 2006 World Cup, though they failed to make it out of the group stage in South Africa four years later, while success also eluded them in the Euros during Ribery's stint on the international stage.

Greatness in Germany

In 2007, Bayern paid Marseille €25million for the 24-year-old. It was an investment worth every cent.

Ribery went on to play 425 times for Bayern in all competitions, making him the non-German player with the second-most appearances for the club, behind David Alaba (431), since 1965.

When it comes to French players, only Jonathan Schmid has made more Bundesliga appearances (296) than Ribery (273), who scored 124 goals in all competitions for Bayern.

Since detailed data collection of the Bundesliga began in 2004, Thomas Muller is the only player to provide more assists than Ribery, who set up 92 goals.

Ribery was at the peak of his powers in the 2012-13 season, as he helped Bayern win the treble and was named UEFA Men's Player of the Year, before going on to come third in the Ballon d'Or rankings.

That season, he provided 14 assists in the Bundesliga, a total trailing only Andres Iniesta (16) when it came to players in Europe's big five leagues.

Ribery left Bayern as a club great, having formed one of the all-time most fearsome wing partnerships with Arjen Robben. He won nine Bundesliga titles, a tally that trails only former club-mates Alaba and Robert Lewandowski (10 each) when it comes to foreign players in Germany's top tier.

Italian swansong

After leaving Bayern, Ribery tried his hand in Italy, joining Fiorentina.

Over his two seasons in Florence, Ribery created 70 goalscoring opportunities in Serie A, behind only Erick Pulgar (104) in Fiorentina's squad. His dribbling ability was still top class, too, with Gaetano Castrovilli his only team-mate to complete more dribbles (123 to Ribery's 117).

Ribery played 51 times for Fiorentina in all competitions, starting on 47 occasions. He scored five goals, contributed nine assists and had 182 touches in the opposition's box. Surprisingly, he played only five successful crosses, though he was often deployed in a more central role for La Viola.

In his 25 matches for Salernitana, Ribery failed to score, though his three assists in Serie A mean he is the club's joint-top creator of goals, alongside Milan Djuric and Pasquale Mazzocchi, in the same timeframe. 

Former France and Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery has announced his retirement from football.

Ribery's deal with Salernitana would have taken his stay at the Serie A side up to the end of this season, but he has decided to hang his boots up now.

The 39-year-old also played for a number of other clubs in a 22-year career, including Metz, Galatasaray, Marseille and Fiorentina.

Ribery spent the bulk of his career at Bayern, though, where he won nine Bundesliga titles in 12 years.

He also won six DFB-Pokal titles, one Champions League, a UEFA Super Cup and a FIFA Club World Cup.

In his time at the Bavarian giants, Ribery made 273 Bundesliga appearances, recording 86 goals and 92 assists.

He wrote on Twitter: "The ball stops. The feelings inside me do not. Thanks to everyone for this great adventure."

Ribery forged a spectacular wing partnership with Arjen Robben, with the duo terrorising defences from either flank during their decade together in Munich, before both left the club in 2019.

Ribery won 81 caps for France in all, scoring 16 times before retiring from international football in 2014, and was a member of Les Bleus' squad when they finished as runners-up to Italy at the 2006 World Cup.

He moved to Fiorentina after leaving Germany, scoring five and assisting nine goals in 51 appearances before signing for Salernitana in 2021.

Overall he managed just three assists in 25 games for the club, and featured only twice this season, both times in August, in the Coppa Italia against Parma and as a substitute in the 1-0 Serie A defeat at home to Roma.

Ribery will remain at Salernitana in a non-playing capacity, the club said.

Julian Nagelsmann saw the Bayern Munich he was looking for as the reigning champions crushed Freiburg 5-0 to leapfrog their visitors into second place in the Bundesliga.

Serge Gnabry, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Leroy Sane, Sadio Mane and Marcel Sabitzer scored in a rout at the Allianz Arena as Bayern kept up their remarkable home record against Freiburg.

Bayern have never lost at home against Sunday's opponents in the Bundesliga, with this success meaning they have taken 20 wins and three draws from their 23 clashes in Munich.

Results and performances in the Champions League have been good for Bayern, but in the Bundesliga they have been inconsistent. Now, perhaps, after last week's jolt of letting Borussia Dortmund pinch a point from 2-0 down, we might start to see coach Nagelsmann's men at their clinical best domestically on a regular basis.

Bayern began this game two points behind their visitors, just the third time they had ever gone into a Bundesliga game against Freiburg trailing them in the standings.

A strong start from Bayern resulted in them leading inside 13 minutes thanks to Gnabry's fine header after Mark Flekken's sharp save from Leroy Sane's close-range shot resulted in the ball looping up towards the penalty spot.

The hosts doubled their lead in the 33rd minute when Choupo-Moting was not sufficiently closed down inside the penalty area by Matthias Ginter, with the striker drilling a low shot across Flekken and inside the left post.

Gnabry hit the left post before Sane struck in the 52nd minute to effectively kill the game, as a fierce 22-yard shot with his left foot sped past Flekken into the left corner.

With the pressure off, Mane got in on the act with a neat lob after Philipp Lienhart made an embarrassingly poor attempt to cut out Gnabry's floated pass from the right flank. Sabitzer added the fifth in the 80th minute, capitalising on more messing defending before sweeping home from 15 yards.

Oliver Kahn says Bayern Munich "absolutely have to stop" allowing opposing teams back into games after they nearly squandered another lead in the 4-2 Champions League win at Viktoria Plzen.

Goals from Sadio Mane and Thomas Muller, as well as a Leon Goretzka double had Bayern four goals up and cruising at half-time against the Czech champions.

But two second-half strikes from Plzen led to worries Bayern would let another advantage slip, after conceding a 95th-minute Anthony Modeste equaliser in the 2-2 Bundesliga draw with Borussia Dortmund at the weekend having led 2-0.

Julian Nagelsmann's side held on this time for three points to secure their place in the knockout stages, but Bayern CEO Kahn remains worried over their ability to see out games.

"Four games, four wins and into the round of 16," Kahn posted on Twitter. "A compliment to the team, in this group that was not a matter of course.

"After a furious first half, we let the opponent come back into the game.

"We absolutely have to stop this!"

Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies has been diagnosed with a "bruised skull" following an incident in Saturday's Der Klassiker against Borussia Dortmund.

Davies was caught in the head by Jude Bellingham's foot after the pair challenged for a loose ball during the 2-2 draw at Signal Iduna Park.

The Canada international received treatment for the injury in the first half before being substituted at half-time.

Bayern confirmed on Sunday that the 21-year-old suffered a "bruised skull", though did not give any timescale for his return to action.

Bayern boss Julian Nagelsmann was not happy with the challenge and believed Bellingham, who had already been booked, should have received a red card.

Speaking after the game, Nagelsmann said: "He hits him in the face. The rules are clear. There is a suspicion of a concussion. That's not surprising given the kick in the face.

"Four months ago, we had a training course. They told us that a kick in the face is a red."

Edin Terzic applauded his Borussia Dortmund players for their "wild" comeback which brought about a dramatic 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich in Saturday's Klassiker.

Head coach Terzic saw his side fall two goals behind after Leon Goretzka and Leroy Sane both struck from long range.

He later suggested other teams would have folded at that point and crumpled to a heavy defeat, so Dortmund's resilience and refusal to buckle brought cause for celebration.

Youssoufa Moukoko narrowed the deficit in the 74th minute, and Anthony Modeste equalised in the fifth minute of stoppage time when he headed in Nico Schlotterbeck's cross.

The scenes of delirium inside Signal Iduna Park told their own story, with Dortmund halting a run of eight consecutive defeats to their great rivals.

"It was a very intense match," Terzic said. "In the first half in particular, we defended very well and kept it compact in the middle.

"The ball was in front of us. We gave away only that one shot at goal which made it 1-0. 

"At that point, it's not so easy to keep your discipline when the emotions and the desire to take risks are being transmitted to the team from the stands.

"You then need to be careful that you don't open up too early and that the gaps don't become too big."

Terzic responded to Sane's 53rd-minute strike by bringing on substitutes Karim Adeyemi, Modeste and Thorgan Hazard in an effort to save the game.

"It got wild towards the end; that was also the aim of the substitutions," Terzic said. "It was end to end.

"What was very positive was that we believed up until the last moment that something was still possible, even though we'd missed a huge opportunity to equalise in the 82nd minute."

Modeste scuffed his shot from Adeyemi's cross on that occasion, but after Bayern went down to 10 men, losing Kingsley Coman for a second bookable offence when he tugged at Adeyemi, there was a final twist to come.

"It was a very deserved point because we created many chances at the end," Terzic said. "When you're 2-0 down against Bayern, the match normally ends 4-0 or 5-0.

"That didn't happen today. We were able to put an exclamation mark behind the mentality question for today."

Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann believes Jude Bellingham should have been sent off in the 2-2 Der Klassiker draw against Borussia Dortmund.

Nagelsmann's side went into a two-goal lead after strikes from Leon Goretzka and Leroy Sane, but a late comeback changed the course of the game, with Youssoufa Moukoko and a last-minute Anthony Modeste header levelling for the hosts.

The game could have been different, however, had Bellingham been shown a red card for a challenge on Alphonso Davies that left the Bayern defender with a suspected concussion.

Bellingham was not booked for the foul, where a high boot struck the head of the Canada international, and Nagelsmann believes the wrong action was taken – where a yellow would have been his second of the game, resulting in a dismissal.

"He hits him in the face. The rules are clear. There is a suspicion of a concussion. That's not surprising given the kick in the face," he told Sky.

"Four months ago, we had a training course. They told us that a kick in the face is a red."

For years Robert Lewandowski was the main draw of Der Klassiker, then Erling Haaland joined him as Germany's biggest fixture became stylised as a shootout between arguably the world's finest number nines.

Of course, both players departed in pre-season meaning the build-up to Saturday's instalment needed two new poster boys.

And boys they are.

Jamal Musiala's exceptional start to the season has seen his already significant stock rise, while Jude Bellingham has elevated himself to become undroppable for BVB and almost similarly important at international level.

As it happened, Bellingham ended up being upstaged by the even younger Youssoufa Moukoko as the game became something of a 'Kids' Klassiker' – though it was ultimately 34-year-old Anthony Modeste who stole the limelight at the end of an eventually gripping 2-2 draw at Signal Iduna Park.

Frankly, though, it was difficult to rave about almost anyone during a rather frantic and chaotic first half that was sorely lacking quality.

Players seemed to be frequently miscontrolling the ball, falling over or bumping into each other. Scrappy, frustrating and largely devoid of goal-mouth action, it certainly wasn't what many a neutral might be accustomed to when watching the Klassiker.

At the break, Dortmund had accumulated just 0.47 expected goals (xG), while Bayern's was 0.09. Though perhaps typifying their historical ruthlessness, it was enough to give Die Roten a 1-0 lead at the interval.

Julian Nagelsmann will have felt particularly content in that regard given Bayern were unbeaten in their previous 72 Bundesliga games when leading at the break, and he'll have no doubt enjoyed seeing Musiala at the centre of things having channelled Pep Guardiola when calling him a "top-top-top player" pre-game.

The young forward was one of Bayern's brighter players in the first period and he more than played a part as the visitors opened the scoring.

He peeled into the left side of the box to receive the ball before showing admirable poise and composure to cut inside and tee up Leon Goretzka on the edge of the box, with the midfielder drilling into the bottom-left corner.

That took Musiala to nine Bundesliga goal involvements for the season, a figure bettered only by Niclas Fullkrug (10).

Those hoping for effectively a straight battle between Musiala and his former England youth colleague Bellingham will have been disappointed.

After a harsh early booking – for what appeared a fair albeit strong challenge on Musiala – the Dortmund talent struggled to impose himself as a creative influence and could even be accused of trying a little too hard in the second half, as he attempted to beat his man a second time in the area instead of feeding a team-mate when BVB caught Bayern on the break.

A few seconds later, he needlessly passed the ball out of play just outside his own area as Bayern players began to circle, with the 19-year-old – who by this point was wearing the captain's armband – subsequently showing frustration in his reaction.

On the other side of the 'Kids' Klassiker' battle, a few moments earlier Musiala had enjoyed another moment of decisiveness – if we can call it that. He broke behind the Dortmund midfield and played a pass that was nudged on by a defender to Leroy Sane, whose long-range strike found its way in even though Alexander Meyer got a firm hand to it.

Despite Musiala's clear impact, Moukoko had a claim to being the Klassiker's standout youngster on the day. The 17-year-old's decision-making may not have been perfect, but he worked tirelessly up front, his constant harrying and hassling kept the Bayern backline under pressure – his three tackles was second only to Emre Can (five) in the Dortmund team.

He then got Dortmund back in contention with an excellent finish. Modeste's pass into the centre of the box was ever so slightly behind Moukoko, but he still managed to get enough power to strike past Manuel Neuer despite the needing to dig the ball out from himself a little.

Modeste then went from provider to finisher with the last kick (header) of the game, nodding Nico Schlotterbeck's cross in at the far post as Dortmund piled on the pressure in stoppage time, sparking pandemonium in the stands and on the pitch – Bellingham's scream into the close-up camera presumably causing a few viewers to subconsciously jump out of their seats.

To be fair, there were few bums on seats in the Yellow Wall behind the Bayern goal as Modeste tucked his header away, with the Frenchman's double impact proving that, even around all the potential in the world, there's always space for good old experience and nous.