Bayern Munich doctor quits after 'being blamed for Porto defeat'

Doctor Mueller-Wohlfahrt has been in charge since 1977 and has also treated many other top global athletes, including sprinter Usain Bolt, while also being the German national team doctor as well.

"After the Champions League game at Porto for unexplained reasons it was the medical department that was chiefly blamed for the defeat," Mueller-Wohlfahrt said in a late night statement on Thursday.

He said "the relationship of trust has been permanently damaged."

Bayern have been struggling with injuries in recent weeks with Bastian Schweinstieger, Franck Ribery, Arjen Robben and David Alaba all missing the game against the Portuguese team on Wednesday.

The ties with Pep Guardiola, who took over in 2014, were tense from the first season with midfielder Thiago Alcantara being sent for treatment to Barcelona by the Spanish coach without consulting the team doctor.

The most recent incident was involving Ribery. The player was initially ruled out for a few days with an injury but the winger has now missed the last five weeks.

"Ask the team doctor, I have no idea," Guardiola said last week when asked when the player would make his comeback.

Mueller-Wohlfahrt's resignation comes at a crucial time for Bayern, who are chasing a treble of titles, entering the crucial phase of the season.

Bayern, who are 10 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga, face Borussia Dortmund in the German Cup last four and have to overturn the 3-1 deficit against Porto in the return leg in Munich next week.

Michael Wollny, Eurosport.de: "This is not just some old guy tired of his job. It's a struggle for power behind the scenes. Mueller-Wohlfahrt and Guardiola really don't like each other. And now after the defeat at Porto even Bayern president Karl Heinz Rummenigge is said to have criticised the doctor over why Robben and Ribery aren't fit yet.

"As for the clapping? it's not certain that it was really aimed at 'Mull', and while it seems that way there is no proof. One thing is certain, though: the doctor is p***** off."

Bayern Munich's Champions League humbling last season was one thing - a Ronaldo-inspired Real Madrid in full cry could beat anyone. But the defeat by Porto is a different matter, and it's clear that everyone at the Allianz Arena is looking for answers. And nobody more so than Guardiola.

But how sad it would be if Guardiola's efforts to find those answers have upset the applecart - because that's very much the way it's beginning to look. The Spaniard has been hailed for making Bayern seem unbeatable domestically, but many fans are now pointing to the fact that he took over a happy, vibrant club that had just won the treble, and has turned it into an unhappy club that failed to make the final last season and is staring in the face of a similar fate for this campaign.

Within the next 11 days Bayern face a Champions second leg against Porto and a DFB Pokal cup semi-final against Borussia Dortmund. If Guardiola's men come through both triumphant, all this will be forgotten. Lose both, and the door is wide open for any scenario - even the much-discussed potential switch that would see Guardiola move from Bayern to Manchester.