“It is not okay” – Bayern Munich go on the attack over Manuel Neuer v Marc-Andre ter Stegen row

Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has dismissed claims that Marc-Andre ter Stegen deserves a chance in the German national team.

Following his excellent displays for Barcelona over the past few seasons, many German fans believe Ter Stegen should start over veteran Manuel Neuer.

Manuel Neuer vs Marc-Andre Ter Stegen: Five things to know…

• Marc-Andre ter Stegen has so far won 22 caps for Germany.
• But he remains unable to oust veteran Manuel Neuer, who has 90 caps to date.
• The Barcelona shot-stopper has only played 45 minutes for Die Mannschaft in 2019.
• He told the press that he doesn’t understand why he isn’t playing for Germany.
• This began a verbal spat between the two goalkeepers.

Speaking to Sport1, Hoeness jumped to the defence of Neuer. This shouldn’t come as a surprise – after all, he has served Bayern well for the best part of eight years now.

When responding to Ter Stegen’s comments, he said: “That’s a joke.

“I think it is not okay how the Munich press deals with that topic. The press in western Germany supports Marc-Andre extremely. As if he had already won 17 World Championships.

“And I do not see support from the southern German press for Manuel. It is not okay to bring such a topic to the public.

“He [Ter Stegen] has no claim to play. For the ‘keepers, it is different than for the other players, because you can’t constantly switch.”

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“Manuel Neuer is number one”

Hoeness made his feelings clear that Bayern have been mistreated by the German FA (DFB) in the past. The axing of Mats Hummels, Jerome Boateng and Thomas Muller made international news headlines last year and the Bayern president wants the DFB to back Neuer publicly.

He added: “The hierarchy has to be clear and say: Manuel Neuer is the number one. He has been the best goalkeeper in the world for many years.

“He was injured for a while, but it was clear that only he can be the number one when he returns to his old form. And he has now.

“I would have expected more support from the DFB. We always have trouble with the DFB. First the removal of our three players and now the same with Manuel Neuer.

“It’s not okay to allow a team-mate to go public on a topic he’s only supposed to discuss with Jogi Low.”