Bayern says Jérôme Boateng will not have a coaching internship after fans protest

MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich says that the former Bayern and Germany defender Jérôme Boateng will not visit the club to develop his coaching career after protests by fans related to Boateng’s conviction last year for causing bodily harm to his former partner.

Bayern coach Vincent Kompany, a former teammate of Boateng as a player, had indicated last month that he’d welcome Boateng spending time with the club as part of his plans to launch a coaching career.

Bayern fans had displayed banners objecting to Boateng’s presence at the club. The former defender was given a suspended fine and a warning by a Munich court that convicted him last year of causing bodily harm to his former partner. Boateng has always denied wrongdoing.

“In a constructive exchange between FC Bayern and Jérôme Boateng this week, it was decided that Jérôme Boateng will not be visiting FC Bayern to observe training,” Bayern said in a statement late Saturday.

“Jérôme feels very connected to FC Bayern and does not want FC Bayern to suffer damage as a result of the current controversial discussion surrounding him.”

Boateng wrote in a statement on Instagram addressed to Bayern and Kompany on Saturday that he had decided to pursue other interests “following the recent discussions about me” and said he wanted the club to be able to focus on its performance on the field.

Boateng, who won the Champions League with Bayern twice and the World Cup with Germany in 2014, announced his retirement as a player last month. In August, his contract with Austrian club LASK Linz was ended by mutual agreement even though it had another season to run.

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