Heynckes hopeful on Robben return

Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes is hopeful that Arjen Robben can make his comeback in next week’s DFB Pokal match against Kaiserslautern.

The Netherlands international has been out of action since Bayern’s 3-0 Bundesliga win over Wolfsburg on September 25, and has since been working on his recovery.

“Arjen trained really well on Tuesday. He had no pain at all. He’ll play plenty of very good games for us and score important goals in the future,” Heynckes said.

“I think he could be a candidate for the cup against Kaiserslautern. I’m optimistic.”

The 67-year-old praised Thomas Mueller following his impressive performances so far this year.

“He’s back to his best this season, agile, lively and fresh. It’s having an effect on our game. He’s one of the leading players in the team, he’s an international, he happily takes responsibility, he leads from the front and he’s always totally committed,” Heynckes said.

“It’s fantastic to see him putting on a show.”

Heynckes also discussed Bayern’s hectic schedule and stressed that he will continue to rest his key players whenever possible.

“When you’re playing every three days, you’re never going to produce an absolutely top performance every time. It’s not possible. The demands we have at the moment can’t simply be spread across 11 sets of shoulders,” he said.

“All the players have to play their part, and the game in Lille proved that to me yet again. I’ll definitely be making a couple of changes for next Wednesday’s cup tie against Kaiserslautern.”

Bayern resume match action on Sunday when they take on Bayer Leverkusen.