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Bayern Munich’s revamped line-up faces an early test in their Champions League opener at home against Club World Cup winners Chelsea on Wednesday.

A rematch of the 2012 final at the same venue, won on penalties by the English club, Bayern have little time to settle after a summer of upheaval, particularly up front.

Forwards Leroy Sane, Kingsley Coman, Thomas Mueller and Mathys Tel all left in the summer. Only two replacements have been brought in: Luis Diaz, from Liverpool, and Nicolas Jackson, from Chelsea on loan.

With Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies out with long-term injuries, the lack of summer activity earned Bayern some rare criticism from talisman Harry Kane.

Not known for controversial statements, the 32-year-old Kane called Bayern’s squad “thin”, adding “maybe one of the smallest I’ve had in my career.”

With four goals and two assists in his opening five games, Diaz has hit the ground running in Germany.

But Chelsea, crowned Cup World Cup winners after a dominant display against Paris Saint-Germain just two months ago, are likely to pose a sterner test.

Like Chelsea, Bayern are expected to make it out of the league phase but have their sights set on qualifying directly and avoiding another two-legged knockout tie.

Last year, Bayern finished 12th and struggled to get past Celtic, winning 3-2 on aggregate.

Kane admitted on Saturday the extra burden cut their momentum later in the season.

“It’s important to be in the top eight because that extra game can make a big difference.

“Last year, playing that Celtic game home and away in our busiest period, it made a big difference, and we ended up losing a few players after that period in March.

“It’s important to start well.”

Just over 13 years since Chelsea upset Bayern in their own backyard, both sides have since won another Champions League title.

Mueller’s summer departure leaves Bayern captain Manuel Neuer as the only player from either team set to take part on Wednesday.

READ ALSO: Liverpool, Man City Face Real Madrid In Champions League (FULL DRAW)

 Jackson’s ‘hard role to play’ 

Jackson came off the bench in his Bayern debut on Saturday and is unlikely to start against his parent club on Wednesday.

But moments after Jackson’s debut, the England captain said the Senegal striker was more than just a “back-up.”

“I think a lot of people assume that, but he’s someone who can play across the whole front four, and I think there’ll be many times we’ll play together.

“I don’t see him as a back-up — I see him as an attacking player who can help us.”

With Kane, Diaz, Michael Olise and Serge Gnabry impressing for Bayern this season, Jackson will have limited opportunities at first — a difficult task for a player often criticised for missing crucial chances.

It is a role familiar to former Bayern striker Claudio Pizarro, who became a super-sub behind Mario Gomez, Mario Mandzukic and later Robert Lewandowski during a near 15-year association with the club.

Pizarro, who also had a stint at Chelsea, told AFP in Berlin on Saturday: “In my situation during my time at Bayern, I knew my job.

“I have to come in, score my goals, be ready to do my thing when I have the chance.

“It’s a hard role to play. I hope (Jackson) will adapt like Luis (Diaz).”

A six-time German champion, Pizarro said Jackson’s arrival could unleash healthy competition like that which drove Bayern to the treble in 2013, a year after the painful loss to Chelsea.

Pizarro revealed how the rivalry between his former teammates Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery on each wing pushed Bayern to greater heights.

“One wanted to be the best, the other as well: Franck and Arjen. They were great for us, but they always wanted to be better than the other.

Champions League Fixtures (Tuesday)

Apart from the clash, there are other Champions League games billed for Tuesday:

Athletic Club vs Arsenal

PSV Eindhoven vs Union Saint-Gilloise

Juventus vs Borussia Dortmund

Real Madrid vs Marseille

Benfica vs Qarabağ

Nigeria’s world record holder Tobi Amusan took silver in the women’s 100m hurdles at the world championships in Tokyo on Monday.

Amusan clocked 12.29sec behind Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji who clocked a national record of 12.24sec to win a shock gold.

American Grace Stark claimed bronze in 12.34sec, while Olympic champion Masai Russell finished fourth with 12.44sec.

The Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Shehu Dikko, has dismissed claims that Nigerian athletes participating at the World Championship in Tokyo are poorly kitted.

Dikko said that the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) should be commended for providing Nigerian athletes with kits for the international event.

While stating that the kits were not inferior, he also dismissed the notion that the NSC was responsible for kitting athletes.

READ ALSO: World Cup Qualifiers: NSC Chair Says NFF Will Decide Eric Chelle’s Fate

“Those kits were not inferior as people were trying to say, because other countries are using similar kits from Hiracer. It is just probably about the packing because it was not put in a box, like other countries are doing, and it was not bought in bulk.

“Tobi is our star athlete, and we respect her a lot. So, she did the video; it is what it is, but it is not the case, Dikko said on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Monday.

“That was why we kept quiet for the past two days, because now, you have seen that all the athletes have been using the same kit. Probably, she had an issue with the packaging, [or] she had an issue with the quantity at that particular time.

“I thought the AFN should have been praised for going quickly to get the transaction with Hiracer, which includes a lot of bonuses and motivation for the athletes if they win,” he added.

World record holder, Tobi Amusan, had in a video post criticised the AFN for allegedly handing over poor-quality kits to Nigerian athletes for the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.

But the AFN refuted the claim.

Amusan claimed silver in the 100 metres hurdles at the World Championship in Tokyo on Monday.

In May, she won the women’s 100 metres hurdles at the Diamond League meet in Rabat, Morocco.

Amid growing concerns over the poor performance of the Super Eagles at the ongoing World Cup qualifiers, the National Sports Commission (NSC) on Monday said that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) will determine the fate of Super Eagles coach, Eric Chelle.

The Chairman of the NSC, Shehu Dikko, stated this on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief.

“Eric Chelle is the responsibility of the Nigeria Football Federation to decide. At the end of the day, after they finish, they’ll do the analysis, and then they will recommend to us, and then we look at it, we approve or disapprove, or we engage to do that,” said Dikko.

“As for the World Cup, we all know where we are. When we came on board, we only had three points out of 12, but now we have been able to, at least with Eric Chelle, the NFF, pull ourselves together. Now, we have eight points in another four games.

“If we had gotten these results before, probably, we could have been preparing to qualify for the World Cup,” he added.

‘Eagles’ Fate Not In Our Hands’

Dikko explained that while the NSC has supported the team, the fate of Nigeria in the World Cup qualifiers was not in the hands of the sports commission.

“Based on the numbers, it’s out of our hands,” Dikko said on the breakfast show.

“So we just have to win our next two games and see what happens because it’s in football; somebody has to lose, for you to qualify.

“So, we have to win our next two games and see where it takes us. But we are still hopeful. Anything can happen.

“As a commission, we did all we had to do to support. For the last game we played, the National Sports Commission chartered a flight, paid for hotels, and made the bonuses available.”

Poor Campaign

With two matches left to play in Group C, Nigeria are six points behind South Africa, who are topping the group with 17 points, and three points behind Benin.

The Super Eagles are on 11 points on the table.

The Eagles failed to secure maximum points away to South Africa in Bloemfontein on September 9, leaving Nigeria’s 2026 World Cup hopes hanging by a thread.

An own goal by captain William Troost-Ekong and an equaliser from Calvin Bassey saw Nigeria held to a 1-1 draw in the crucial qualifier against the Bafana Bafana.

The situation has left Nigeria requiring a miracle to reach the tournament to be hosted by the US, Canada, and Mexico.

Irked by the performance, a former Super Eagles captain, Mikel Obi, called for the disbandment of the NFF if the country failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

Mikel said the country’s struggles in the World Cup qualifier were due to the football body’s inability to put its house in order.

“If Nigeria doesn’t qualify for the World Cup, the entire NFF board has to go… It’s unacceptable,” the former Chelsea star stated on the Obi One Podcast.

Nigeria’s next match will be against Lesotho on October 8.

Three days after, the Super Eagles will play their last game of the qualifiers against Benin on October 11.

Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Fermin Lopez struck twice each as Barcelona thumped Valencia 6-0 on Sunday in a La Liga match they were forced to play at their tiny training ground stadium because of delays in reopening the Spotify Camp Nou.

The rampant Spanish champions moved second, two points behind leaders Real Madrid, who boast a 100 percent record after their win at Real Sociedad on Saturday.

Hosting the game at the 6,000-capacity Johan Cruyff Stadium beside their training facilities west of the city, with the rebuilt Camp Nou not yet permitted to open, Barca’s first home game of the season saw high-calibre football in a low-key setting.

Star forward Lamine Yamal’s absence due to a groin issue was a further blow for Barca, with coach Hansi Flick criticising the Spanish national team for playing him twice despite the problem during World Cup qualifiers last week.

However, Barcelona’s display, above all in the second half, helped them forget his absence and their disappointing draw at Rayo Vallecano in their previous La Liga outing.

“I appreciate what I saw today a lot, and this is a start after the break,” said Flick, who was upset with his players after the Rayo game a fortnight ago.

Lopez said last season’s winners of a domestic treble were on the right track.

“The message is the same as last year, to play with intensity and humility, I think we’re on a good path and we have to continue like this,” said the midfielder.

Flick handed Roony Bardghji his debut on the right flank in Yamal’s stead after his summer arrival from Copenhagen.

Barcelona dominated Valencia in the first half without creating many clear-cut chances.

Marcus Rashford and Ferran Torres fired narrowly over and wide, respectively, as Flick’s side penned in the visitors.

Lopez, linked with a move to Chelsea during the summer, dug in to stay at Barca and proved his worth against Los Che.

Barca took the lead after 29 minutes when Torres flicked on a pass into the midfielder’s path.

Lopez scampered into the box and flashed a strike across Julen Agirrezabala and into the net.

Carlos Corberan’s Valencia, 15th, did not muster a shot in the first half to Barca’s 11, playing conservatively after a 7-1 thrashing by the Blaugrana in January.

Flick brought on Raphinha for the quiet Bardghji at half-time as he sought to put the game to bed, and soon had the goals he wanted.

Rashford, on his brightest outing since joining from Manchester United on loan, whipped in a dangerous cross which Raphinha slid home at the far post.

It was Rashford’s first direct goal contribution since arriving at the club.

Three minutes later Lopez blasted in a third from long range, which goalkeeper Agirrezabala might have dealt with better.

READ ALSO: Man City Humiliate Woeful Man United As Pressure Mounts On Amorim

‘Can still improve’ 

“Today is a great step for (Lopez) and this is what I want to see every match,” said Flick.

“He has amazing quality… and when he has this confidence, he’s really great, (but) I think he can still improve.”

Raphinha smashed in Barca’s fourth at the near post as the Catalans ran riot.

Flick shuffled his pack with Thursday’s Champions League opener in mind, bringing on Polish veteran Lewandowski and Dani Olmo.

The 37-year-old striker grabbed his first goal of the season with a lethal finish after Olmo played him in behind the defence.

Flick was also able to bring on midfielder Marc Bernal following a long absence after a severe knee injury, and he set up Lewandowski to dink home the sixth.

“It seems like they’ve got the measure of us,” said Valencia defender Jose Gaya.

“We weren’t capable of diminishing their strengths once again, it was a big scoreline again…

“We tried to stop them with our game plan but the second goal did us a lot of damage, we couldn’t stop it and then came the third.”