{sports.bayern} Karimi Started the 2nd Half

FC Bayern Munich lost 2-1 to VFB Stuttgart in the German League Cup in their nice new stadium, the Allianz. They would head to Tokyo for a four-day marketing camp today. The Bundesliga's first kick-off is on August 5.

Despite the hype in the Iranian news media that Ali Karimi would appear in the starting lineup in the recent clash, he started off bench and entered the field at the start of the second half for Owen Hargreaves. I would try to reflect his situation with the team as realistically as possible in my blog. There is still no video coverage of the match on their site, but according to the match recap, the second goal was awarded after the ball possession was taken from Karimi. I would not comment before seeing what exactly has happened.

Karimi started the training camp with high ambitions and I have high hopes that he really ends up in the starting lineup. Sky should be the limit for him.

The above GIF Animation is Karimi's goal versus SC Bonn clash. Quoting from the English commentator of the match highlights, "... Fifteen minutes later, Owen Hargreaves, with a cross inside and Ali Karimi, new signing and Asian Footballer of the year, scores the 2-0 for Bayern Munich crowning his performance, not only with this heading goal but also with a good performance in offensive and midfield control."

Please do not mind the low quality of the animation. I tried to optimize the animation as much as possible, such that fans in Iran who do not have access to high bandwidth Internet could watch Karimi's good header. That game ended up 4-2 for Bayern and at the end, Bayern's manager, Felix Magath, commented on Karimi's performance, "I am happy that he is in a better physical condition than some had feared. Nevertheless, he doesn't have the physical substance the others do. But, he has great footballing skills and it's a joy to watch him play."

After the training camp in Bonn, Felix Magath reviewed Bayern's performance in an exclusive interview. When asked about the condition of the new signings, he replied, "...The only thing I can say is that all three players have been warmly welcomed, and it took them next to no time to be completely integrated, even Ali Karimi who joined us from an entirely different culture has had no problems integrating ...."