With the first competitive games of the international break taking place today, there were three Bayern Munich players who had games to look forward to for their national teams.
At around lunch-time, the third round of the World Cup Asian qualifiers began. Nestory Irankunda and Australia hosted Bahrain, while Kim Min-jae and South Korea went up against Palestine.
Bayern Munich internationals: Defeat for Nestory Irankunda, Kim Min-jae helps South Korea earn a draw
Australia fell to an embarrassing defeat, conceding an 89th minute own goal from Harry Souttar for their visitors to take all three points, despite dominating throughout the game. Irankunda was introduced as a 65th minute substitute, though was not able to make too much of an impact.
This is a tough result to take for Australia, but the new expanded format of the 2026 World Cup qualifying means a top 2 finish in their group guarantees qualification. Should they finish third or fourth, they will have a chance to qualify through the play-offs.
There was also a frustrating result for Kim Min-jae and South Korea, though not as bad nor consequential. Despite a similar amount of dominance, South Korea were unable to get over the line at home to Palestine, and had to settle for a 0-0 draw. The Bayern defender played 90 minutes, and completed 104 passes, which should tell you the sort of game it was.
Next up for Irankunda's Australia is a World Cup qualifier against Indonesia on Tuesday at 14:00 CEST. Next up for Kim Min-jae's South Korea is a World Cup qualifier against Oman on Tuesday at 16:00 CEST.
Finally, João Palhinha sat on the bench as his Portugal side beat Croatia 2-1 in the UEFA Nations League. This will come as a particular disappointment for the midfielder, as he has not started a game for Bayern yet either, making it a slow start to the season for the 29 year old.
In any case, however, there will be another opportunity for Palhinha to play, as Portugal host Scotland on Monday, with kick-off being 20:45 CEST.