Lukas Podolski has admitted he is not surprised that he has been left out of the club's recent squads.
Bayern striker unsurprised at club's decision to drop him altogether
Bayern Munich striker Lukas Podolski has admitted he is not surprised that he has been left out of the club's recent match-day squads.
Manager Jurgen Klinsmann's decision to leave the 23-year-old out in the cold comes after Podolski announced he would be joining former club Cologne at the end of the season.
The Germany international has grown tired of waiting for his chance at the Allianz Arena, having made just four starts in the Bundesliga all season.
Bayern signed the front-man in June 2006 for £6.85million but Podolski has failed to rediscover the form which propelled him into the public eye for Cologne.
"I am definitely disappointed about being left out for the Berlin fixture," he told the
Cologne Express.
"But the decision from the manager was no surprise to me. All I am able to point out is that I am back at full fitness for quite some time now and I would have also been fit enough to take part."
When asked if he would be prepared to play in the Bayern reserve team Podolski admitted: "I have no interest in that."
Signing
Meanwhile Karlsruhe general manager Rolf Dohmen expects striker Sebatian Freis to sign for Cologne on a free transfer when the 23-year-old's contract expires at the end of the season.
"I expect this to happen," he confirmed.
Cologne have also revealed that they do not know the whereabouts of want-away midfielder Roda Antar.
The 28-year-old wants to be reunited with coach Volker Finke at Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds, after the pair worked together at Freiburg, with Antar stating that he has no support from his current coaches.
Clubs in China and Russia have also expressed an interest in the player but Cologne are quick to point out that they will not be forced to sell, despite the Sierra Leone man going AWOL.
"We have once again expressed our desire to keep Roda," the club's general manager Michael Meier told
Bild.
"He is not for sale and will be very important to us, if he works hard in training. We offered him to return to training, but he has decided not to show up for that."
