Thiago, the son of ex-Brazilian footballer Mazinho, says this feels like it will be his second season, rather than his third, due to the long-term knee injury he suffered in 2014.
Thiago has bemoaned how injury has complicated his three seasons as a Bayern Munich player but says he feels “fantastic” ahead of 2015-16. The midfielder did not make his first appearance for Pep Guardiola’s side until April in the previous campaign due to a long-term knee problem picked up 12 months earlier. He said: “I feel fantastic to be able to join Bayern’s pre-season from the start for the first time. I’ve not had an easy time of it so far, the knee injury weighed on me a lot. I missed almost an entire season, so to me it feels like I’m only in my second season. I’m 100 per cent again now and plan to achieve a lot with this team.”