MUNICH: Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany said he believes Harry Kane will be fit to face Celtic on Tuesday, after the striker missed training ahead of the Champions League game. German media reported Kane picked up a knock in Saturday’s hard-fought 0-0 draw at Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga.

Kompany admitted he could not give a definite answer to whether Kane would play, but said a decision would be made on the morning of the game in Munich on Tuesday. “(It’s) definitely nothing bad. We’ve just had very little time to recover and sometimes you need an extra day,” Kompany told reporters on Monday.

Bayern were uncharacteristically defensive against Leverkusen, with Kane and other attackers dropping back to help the visitors keep a clean sheet which maintained their eight-point lead at the top of the table.

“We’ll see early tomorrow how he feels, but I assume it’s nothing too bad — we’ve just got very little time to refresh and recover,” said Kompany. “We’ll see tomorrow.” Against Leverkusen, Kane needed treatment before half-time after his head collided with Piero Hincapie’s shoulder.

Celtic coach Brendan Rodgers on Monday backed the England captain to play. “It doesn’t change anything — we need to win the game. If Harry didn’t play, that’s a big miss for them, but I’m pretty sure there’s another world-class player to come in and play.” Kane scored in the 2-1 victory at Celtic Park last week in the first leg of the knockout phase play-off tie, and Bayern have not lost at home in the Champions League since April 2021.

Kompany said Celtic were “always dangerous, but so are we. It’s a home game, we’ll look to make that play to our advantage.” Bayern midfielder Jamal Musiala insisted the club had “no excuses” despite the short turnaround after Saturday’s top-of-the-table clash.

“None of us want to have excuses. We’re using the days to prepare well for the game - then we have to give it our all. We’re fresh and will give it everything tomorrow,” said Musiala. Rodgers admitted the gap between his club and the European elite had widened in recent decades, but called on his charges to “embrace” the challenge against the six-time winners. “At this level, you have to play without any fear. There’s worse things in life than losing a game of football, so we want to ensure at the end of the game we’ve given it absolutely everything. “We’re not favorites, but anything is possible.” — AFP