As soon it was revealed that Jonas Urbig would start Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga clash against VfB Stuttgart, the narrative of the “Manuel Neuer successors” was being concocted. On the other end of the pitch, in the goal of the DFB-Pokal holders, stood Bayern loanee Alexander Nübel, who the Bavarians signed all the way back in 2020 to be the successor to the legendary Neuer. The current plan is seemingly still to give Nübel a chance to become the long term No.1 in Munich, but after 4 years out on loan,
the former Schalke 04 goalkeeper has hardly been able to make any solid claim for the throne.
Nor will this match have helped at all. Urbig impressed with his long passing and kept a clean sheet while Nübel flapped at multiple shots, was at fault for the Bundesliga champions’ 3rd goal and conceded 5 in total. Bayern’s board member for sport, Max Eberl, was asked by German news site SID about Nübel’s shaky performance after the match and had this to say:
“Alex Nübel has shown very good performances at VfB,” Eberl insisted, as captured by @iMiaSanMia. “Today, one or two things didn’t work out so well, but he still remains an outstanding goalkeeper.”
He was never going to say anything truly critical publicly. What would be the point of that? But how much this match impacted Eberl’s opinion of Bayern’s post-Neuer plans behind closed doors? That is the real question and the answer may yet be revealed through Bayern’s decision making in the 2026 summer transfer window.
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