Germany’s rising star Thomas Mueller was left needing stiches to a chin injury after falling off a mountain bike at his team’s World Cup training camp in northern Italy on Wednesday.
The 20-year-old attacking midfielder, who won the league and cup double with Bayern Munich last season, fell from his bike as part of the team’s training and was left with a cut knee and a gash on his chin.
He received stitches from the German Football Federation’s doctor Josef Schmitt, but the DFB stressed Mueller has no muscle or bone injuries after the crash in the Alps near Eppan.
Vlaar injured
Vienna: Dutch defender Ron Vlaar’s participation in the World Cup next month could be in question after he injured himself on Tuesday during training in Austria. The Feyenoord player had to leave training after suffering a pulled muscle in his left thigh. Whether he will be fit again for the World Cup in South Africa was still unknown, Dutch coach Bert van Marwijk said as he prepared to announce the final squad for the tournament, after a friendly match against Mexico on Thursday.
‘Cup is Spain’s to lose’
Madrid: Spain striker Fernando Torres insisted on Wednesday that his team are convinced that the World Cup is theirs to lose. “We feel it’s our chance and we want to take advantage of it. We feel it’s our turn and we want to continue to make history,” he said. — AFP