Bordeaux out to stop rot against Bayern

FC Girondins de Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc is demanding an improvement from the French champions after two consecutive losses in Ligue 1 – his side having gone down 3-1 away to AS Saint-Etienne and then 1-0 at AJ Auxerre at the weekend. For FC Bayern München's Louis van Gaal, meanwhile – without wingers Franck Ribéry and Arjen Robben as well as defender Edson Braafheid – there are tactical options ahead of the Group A encounter in south-west France.

Quotes
Laurent Blanc, Bordeaux coach
The two defeats were really disappointing. We did not respect the basic principles of defending and we lost. But I also know that in the Champions League my team do not make the same mistakes. They are aware of that too. We need a big game and I am looking forward to it – the boys cannot wait to play another big European side. Bayern are like all football teams, in that when you lose big players you are less effective – that's the case with Bayern missing Ribéry and Robben. This match is important. We know this group will be tight and I think Bordeaux can mix it with top teams like Bayern and Juventus. The most important thing is to create chances. It is never easy against German opponents because they are very well-organised and we will have to be solid ourselves.

Louis van Gaal, Bayern coach
Ribéry has given me some information about Bordeaux, but I also trust my scouts who have seen them a couple of times. I won't tell you what they told me, but I know them and I hope we're going to get a result. Bordeaux play 4-4-2 and I have briefed my players about their game. We might change tactics or systems because Bordeaux can play quite defensively, although I like to stick to our style. We certainly respect Bordeaux. Laurent Blanc was a great player and I'm not surprised how successful he has been as coach. We were able to hold on in Freiburg [to win 2-1] without some big players, and I'm confident they will do well again here. A Champions League game is always important. We are top of the group with a better goal difference and we have to build on this.

Weekend results
17/10/09 AJ Auxerre 1-0 FC Girondins de Bordeaux
(Birsa 73pen)

• The defeat at Auxerre was Bordeaux's second in as many outings, representing their first back-to-back losses since February 2007.

• Fernando Cavenaghi's penalty was saved by Auxerre goalkeeper Olivier Sorin, meaning the Argentinian forward has missed two of his last three spot-kicks.

• The 3-1 loss at St-Etienne on 3 October was Bordeaux's first defeat since a 3-0 reverse at Toulouse FC on 7 March – a 21-match unbeaten sequence that included 19 wins.

17/10/09 SC Freiburg 1-2 FC Bayern München
(Reisinger 90; Müller 42, Cha 68og)

• Thomas Müller has scored six goals in his last eight games, with five of those strikes coming in the final 20 minutes.

Team news
Bordeaux
Out: Henrique (knee)
Doubtful: Yoan Gouffran (hip)
Suspended: none
Misses next match if booked: none

Bayern
Out: Arjen Robben (knee), Franck Ribéry (knee), Ivica Olić (calf), Edson Braafheid (thigh)
Doubtful:
Suspended: none
Misses next match if booked: none

• At Freiburg, Mark van Bommel played his first game since breaking his toe in Bayern's Bundesliga opener against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim while Luca Toni made his first league appearance of the season. Toni had only previously contested 29 minutes of a German Cup tie against SC Rot-Weiss Oberhausen on 22 September.

Background
• The teams' only preceding encounter came in the 1995/96 UEFA Cup final. Bordeaux's campaign had begun in the UEFA Intertoto Cup, making them the only side to reach the final from a starting point of the Intertoto. However, their epic journey had no happy ending as Bayern ran out convincing winners, 2-0 at home and 3-1 away.

• After they opened their account with a 1-1 draw at Juventus, Bordeaux's 1-0 victory against Maccabi Haifa FC on Matchday 2 extended their unbeaten run at home in Europe to four games.

• The Ligue 1 club's last home fixture against German opposition yielded a 4-1 triumph over Werder Bremen in the third round of the 2000/01 UEFA Cup. Ulrich Ramé is the only survivor of that Bordeaux team.

Did you know?
Bordeaux coach Blanc played against Bayern in the UEFA Champions League for Manchester United FC, drawing home (0-0) and away (1-1) in the 2001/02 second group stage.