Bayern's win over Freiburg could be in doubt after they briefly played with 12 men
Due to a substitution mix-up, Bayern were playing with 12 men for around 17 seconds of their 4-1 win over Freiburg, who will now decide whether to lodge an official complaint.
| Kingsley Coman. | Photo: Sven Mandel / CC-BY-SA-4.0 |
With around 85 minutes played of the game, Niklas Süle and Marcel Sabitzer were sent on to replace Corentin Tolisso, who was forced off with illness, and Kingsley Coman, who initially stayed on the pitch.
Freiburg centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck said he quickly noticed the issue and informed the referee of the situation. The game resumed after a long delay.
"'Niki' Sule came in and I noticed that nobody went off," Schlotterbeck told Sky Germany in a post-match interview.
"Then the game started again, I first counted the players and then informed the referee. If I hadn't done that, I think he wouldn't have noticed."
According to referee Christian Dingert, Coman didn't know he was being taken off because the board number showed his old number, 29, instead of his current number, 11, due to a mistake made by Bayern's team manager, Kathleen Krüger.
"It's annoying for us because of course that scene is the focus now. We will note the incident in the match report," said Dingert.
The situation could prove costly for the German champions, with German media suggesting that the win could potentially be taken away from them.
Freiburg will have to lodge a formal complaint for there to be consequences for Bayern. The club have until Monday to do so.
"That was an extremely bizarre scene that I have never experienced before. Does that have an impact? I cannot judge now," Freiburg sporting director Jochen Saier said, according to Goal.com.
"The referee evaluated it for a long time, then let play continue. Will Freiburg protest? We have to calm down now and think about it."
