Vincent Kompany will be ‘protected from himself’ while recovering from collapse

The 40-year-old, who had been ill with a virus, was said to be in a stable condition after being taken to hospital while watching the club’s second team train.

“The fact is we protect our coach wherever we can,” Eberl told a press conference ahead of Sunday’s match against Freiburg, which the club briefly considered asking to be postponed.

“If a coach says he feels ready to do something, then we’re not going to say, ‘we won’t allow that’ if we don’t know what’s going on.

“We held him back for two days because he wasn’t feeling well, then he recovered well and felt fit. He has a mind of his own and the right to make his own decisions.

“Now this has happened it’s also everyone’s own responsibility to say, ‘I can’t carry on now’. If you don’t listen to the subtle signals your body sends, eventually it will scream out in pain.

“I’d be very pleased if we gave everyone involved the time they need. Vinnie will be given that time, and we’ll continue to try, even more than before, to protect him from himself.”

Assistant coach Aaron Danks spoke with Kompany in hospital and looks set to deputise for some time.

“I explained to him that we would be having no football conversations. It was just checking in on his health and making sure he’s OK,” said Danks.

Eberl said the club had put no timeframe on Kompany’s return but it would not be swift.

“We need to firstly figure out what it is and then we’ll discuss calmly what the recovery time is to be,” he added.

“We won’t be talking about days, but weeks. We need to all be clear on that.”

Midfield Joshua Kimmich will also be absent for the Freiburg game as he continues compassionate leave having missed the midweek Champions League draw with Arsenal due to a family bereavement, while Kim Min-jae is injured.