Bayern once bitten, twice shy against BATE
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Article summary
Jupp Heynckes may start Mario Gomez as FC Bayern München bid to seal top spot in Group F with a win over FC BATE Borisov, who "deservedly" beat the German side on matchday two.
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Though FC Bayern München are vying for top spot in UEFA Champions League Group F, and FC BATE Borisov can do no more than finish third, Jupp Heynckes remains wary having been stung by the Belarusian side on matchday two. The visitors, crowned domestic champions last month, have been in Germany for a week and coach Viktor Goncharenko is determined they conclude their campaign on a high.
• Bayern are through and lead Group F ahead of Valencia CF on head-to-head record. Bayern will win the group if they beat BATE or take as many points as Valencia do at LOSC Lille.
• BATE are guaranteed to finish third and will enter the UEFA Europa League as their head-to-head record is superior to LOSC's.
Bayern
Jupp Heynckes, coach
BATE are a really good team – strong technically and physically competitive – so it won't be a kickabout. We saw during our first meeting how good they are and to be honest they deserved that win. They played a really great game. They ran 128km in that game – that is a great performance. We only ran 120. Sometimes teams like BATE are underestimated. Unfortunately, we did that in Belarus.
Mario Gomez is an option to start. He has been playing well again, even though his rhythm is not yet 100%. But I have a lot of good strikers, so I will decide who will play just before the game. As the team are working well, we are all very happy. The team are very close-knit. The team ethic prevails, and we want that to continue.
Weekend result
Saturday: Bayern 1-1 Borussia Dortmund (Kroos 67; Götze 74)
Neuer; Lahm, Dante, Badstuber (Boateng 37), Alaba; Schweinsteiger, Martínez; Müller, Kroos, Ribéry; Mandžukić (Gomez 86).
• Toni Kroos scored his sixth league goal of the season – one more than he managed in his previous two campaigns combined – as Bayern halted a run of four successive Bundesliga defeats by Dortmund.
Team news
Defender Holger Badstuber could miss the rest of the season after rupturing knee ligaments against Dortmund. Arjen Robben (thigh), Luiz Gustavo (groin) and Emre Can (ankle) are sidelined. Heynckes said that Daniel Van Buyten will be on the bench, while Claudio Pizarro is trying to shake off a cold.
BATE
Viktor Goncharenko, coach
All the players are well prepared as it is our last game of the season. We are coming up against one of the best teams in Europe and we must not forget that this is the Champions League; because of that we are very motivated.
Every team that goes to Munich is bound to have many problems against Bayern – it is never easy here. We have to create chances and stay confident. If we get an opportunity, we need to strike immediately. We have had a great week and have prepared really well. The atmosphere was very relaxed and we had everything we needed. We are very well prepared for the game.
I did an internship with Bayern. It was two years ago with Louis van Gaal and I was very impressed by how well things are organised here, especially the training sessions. Bayern are playing even better today but Van Gaal was a very important figure for this team.
Weekend result
Belarusian Premier League champions BATE were not in action having rounded off their domestic campaign with a 2-1 home win against FC Shakhtyor Soligorsk on 25 November.
Team news
BATE have a full squad to choose from.
Match fact
• Before the matchday two encounter in Minsk, Bayern had never faced opponents from Belarus. BATE met Bayern's city rivals TSV 1860 München in the 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup second round, winning 1-0 away – Artem Kontsevoi scoring in the 74th minute having missed a first-half penalty – and 4-0 at home.