Bayern hunt eighth straight win at Wolves

February 6, 2010

Bayern Munich are expected to be without French midfielder Franck Ribery when they hunt their eighth straight Bundesliga win against defending champions Wolfsburg on Saturday.

Bayern’s winning run has bolted them up to second in the table, just two points behind league leaders Leverkusen, and an eighth win at Wolfsburg would keep the pressure on with the leaders at strugglers Bochum on Saturday.

With Munich’s Dutch play-maker Arjen Robben chasing his third consecutive league goal after curling in free-kicks against both Werder Bremen and Mainz in recent weeks, Ribery should be on the bench.

With his contract set to expire in June 2011, Ribery is expected to announce whether he will stay at Bayern in the next few weeks, but coach Louis van Gaal is trying to return him to the side after recovering from a knee injury.

“Ribery is getting ever more fitter, you can see it in training,” said van Gaal.

“I must integrate him back into the team, but that is difficult, because I must do that in a league game.”

Ribery’s agent has said his client is being chased by European giants Manchester United, Real Madrid and Barcelona.

“He would love to play alongside (Barcelona star Lionel) Messi, that would be phenomenal,” Ribery’s agent Alain Migliaccio told Spanish radio.

“There is no door closed, neither to Real Madrid nor to Barca or to Manchester.

“With Bayern we will see how things go up to the beginning of March.”

Van Gaal insists his side have put last season’s 5-1 hammering at home to Wolfsburg out of their heads and Wolves, who sacked coach Armin Veh nearly a fortnight ago, are chasing their first win for 10 games.

Germany striker Mario Gomez has scored six goals in his last eight league games and is relishing facing Wolfsburg.

“For me personally, this is the best it?s ever been in my career,” the 24-year-old said after scoring in last Saturday’s 3-0 victory over Mainz.

Meanwhile, Wolfsburg are desperately trying to keep hold of their striker Edin Dzeko with their hot-shot striker being chased by a number of top European clubs, including Manchester United.

Wolfsburg’s caretaker coach Lorenz-Guenther Koestner is undefeated after his side drew 1-1 at Hamburg, but morale is rock bottom at the defending champions.

Leverkusen, the only unbeaten team in the Bundesliga, are at Bochum with the league’s top-scorer Steffan Kiessling back to scoring ways having netted in last weekend’s 3-1 win at Freiburg.

Schalke are at Freiburg and are defending a six-game unbeaten record which has put them amidst the title contenders and just three points off Leverkusen.

Saturday

VfL Wolfsburg v Bayern Munich, Cologne v Hamburg, Freiburg v Schalke 04, VfL Bochum v Bayer Leverkusen, Hoffenheim v Hanover 96, Nuremberg v VfB Stuttgart

Sunday

Mainz 05 v Borussia M’gladbach, Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt

BERLIN (AFP)

Tags: alain migliaccio, Armin Veh, Bremen, cologne, fortnight, franck ribery, FRANKFURT, free kicks, Germany, Hanover, knee injury, league game, league games, league goal, league leaders, Lionel, lionel messi, Lorenz, louis van gaal, MADRID, mainz, Manchester, manchester united, Munich, nuremberg, spanish radio, stuttgart, Van Gaal, werder bremen

Flying Dutchman Robben puts Bayern back on top

January 30, 2010

Dutch winger Arjen Robben scored his second goal in two matches to seal Bayern Munich’s 3-0 win over Bochum on Saturday to put his side top of the Bundesliga and give them their seventh straight league win.

Having scored the winner in the 3-2 win at Bremen the week before, Robben curled in another free-kick to give Louis van Gaal-coached Bayern three more Bundesliga points.

With Leverkusen facing strugglers Freiburg on Sunday, Bayern can expect to lose their place at the top of the table, but for now they enjoy a single-point lead.

Bayern’s Mario Gomez and Daniel Van Buyten had fired the German giants into the lead before Robben stepped up with the third goal.

The home side took the lead amidst heavy snow when Van Buyten headed home after a cross from Robben on 58 minutes.

French winger Franck Ribery, who continues to work his way back to fitness after a knee injury, came off the bench with 30 minutes remaining.

Ribery and Robben combined to free Germany defender Philipp Lahm down the right flank who fired in a cross which Gomez slotted home on 75 minutes before Robben struck with four minutes remaining.

Elsewhere, Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf is in a precarious position as his side have now gone seven German league games without a win after they went down 4-3 at midtable Borussia Moenchengladbach.

The home side raced into a 3-0 lead after just 18 minutes before Mesut Oezil and Claudio Pizarro pulled goals back for Bremen and captain Torsten Frings converted a penalty with six minutes left to guarantee a frantic finish.

Second from bottom Nuremberg picked up only their second win in their last 10 games when they won 3-1 at Hanover and the result leaves bottom side Hertha Berlin five points adrift after they drew 0-0 with Bochum in the capital.

Cologne are up to 12th after their second consecutive win having beaten Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1.

With defending champions Wolfsburg drawing 1-1 at Hamburg on Friday, fourth-placed Dortmund face Stuttgart on Sunday.

Under former Tottenham Hotspur boss Christian Gross, who took over from Markus Babbel in December, Stuttgart have moved up to 13th in the table.

BERLIN (AFP)

Tags: arjen robben, Bayern, bayern munich, berlin, borussia moenchengladbach, bottom side, Bremen, captain Torsten Frings, christian gross, Claudio Pizarro, coach thomas, cologne, drawing 1, franck ribery, FRANKFURT, german league, Germany, Hamburg, Hanover, heavy snow, knee injury, Louis, louis van gaal, mario gomez, markus babbel, mesut, nuremberg, precarious position, straight league, stuttgart, Thomas Schaaf, Van Buyten, winger

Bayern must keep winning, says striker Gomez

January 30, 2010

Bayern Munich striker Mario Gomez believes the German giants will need to win all of their remaining Bundesliga games to be sure of the title – starting with Mainz on Saturday.

Bayern are second in the table, two points off leaders Leverkusen who host strugglers Freiburg on Sunday.

Having let a 2-0 lead slip to a 2-2 draw against Bochum last weekend, third-placed Schalke will be hoping to take advantage of Hoffenheim’s slump in form when the sides meet on Saturday.

The fate of this season’s Bundesliga title could well be decided when Bayern visit Leverkusen on the second weekend of April, but until then Gomez says Bayern must keep winning.

Louis van Gaal’s team suffered a shock when they were beaten 2-1 at Mainz last August, but with Bayern locked in a fierce battle with Schalke and Leverkusen, Gomez says only consistent victories will put them top.

“I think we?ll need to win nearly all our games to take the title,” said Gomez, who is set to travel to June’s World Cup with Germany, with 15 league games left to go.

Mainz beat Hanover last weekend to pick up their first Bundesliga win in seven games, but Bayern boss van Gaal will want three more points with his side having won all of their last eight games in all competitions.

Bayern have a good chance of making the Champions League’s quarter-finals as they play Fiorentina in the last 16 next month, but the men from Munich are focused on the German league for the time being.

“The only thing which can stop us now is ourselves,” said midfielder and rising star Thomas Mueller who was called into the Germany squad for fitness testing last week.

But unbeaten Leverkusen continue to resist Munich?s march up the standings from eighth place after 12 matches.

“Bayern have overtaken us twice but we?ve hit back on both occasions. We?ve shown real durability,” said Toni Kroos, who is on loan from Bayern to Leverkusen.

The Rhineland outfit have earned a reputation for dramatic losses of form in the second half of the campaign, but no-one at Bayern thinks that will happen this time.

“Leverkusen are playing consistently well right now. We need to focus on ourselves and win our matches, and success will follow automatically,” said Bayern goalkeeper Joerg Butt.

“We have to keep winning, and see how the others react,” said Butt.

Munich were top of the league for 26 hours last weekend.

“What matters is being first in May,” said Butt. “And it?s all still in our own hands.”

Saturday

Borussia M’gladbach v Werder Bremen, Eintracht Frankfurt v Cologne, Hertha Berlin v VfL Bochum, Bayern Munich v Mainz 05, Hanover 96 v Nuremberg, Schalke 04 v Hoffenheim

Sunday

VfB Stuttgart v Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen v Freiburg

BERLIN (AFP)

Tags: Bayern, berlin, Bremen, Bundesliga, cologne, dramatic losses, eight games, eighth place, fierce battle, german league, germany squad, good chance, Hanover, league games, Louis, louis van gaal, mario gomez, Munich, nuremberg, quarter finals, rising star, slump, striker, stuttgart, thomas mueller, toni kroos

Van Gaal, Loew clash over fitness test ‘madness’

January 22, 2010

Bayern Munich coach Louis van Gaal has described the fitness tests for national team players organised by Germany coach Joachim Loew next week as “madness”.

Loew has summoned 29 players, five from Bayern, for four days of tests in Stuttgart that will assess the condition of likely national squad players prior to this summer’s World Cup in South Africa.

“I think it’s madness,” said Van Gaal on Friday, the day before his side’s league meeting with Werder Bremen. “For the clubs, paying our players and then making them available to the national team for four days is not right.”

Philipp Lahm, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Thomas Mueller, Mario Gomez and Miroslav Klose represent the Bayern contingent in Loew’s selection.

“We could have given them the results of our own physical tests. I’ve never experienced something like this and I’ve coached some big clubs,” added Van Gaal, a former manager of Barcelona, Ajax and the Dutch national side.

Loew responded to his critics by pointing out that the dates for the fitness tests had been agreed in advance.

“This get-together was organised a long time ago with the league and the clubs,” he told the SID German news agency.

“I understand the sporting priorities of Louis van Gaal, but we’re in a World Cup year and it’s in the interest of everyone in German football that the team is well prepared.

“That’s why I expect all the clubs to give all their support to the Nationalmannschaft (German national team) until, and during, the World Cup.”

Germany skipper Michael Ballack will not attend the tests in Stuttgart because his club Chelsea require his services for a Premier League match at home to Birmingham on Wednesday.

Van Gaal, meanwhile, will not participate in a seminar for Bundesliga coaches organised by Loew in Stuttgart on Monday, in which the national boss will outline his programme for the run-up to the World Cup.

The Dutchman will be in Portugal for a charity match raising funds for the victims of the Haiti earthquake.

MUNICH, Germany (AFP)

Tags: Ajax, Barcelona, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Bayern, bayern munich, Birmingham, Bremen, dutch national side, dutchman, fitness tests, german football, german national team, german news, Germany, Loew, louis van gaal, mario gomez, Michael Ballack, Miroslav, miroslav klose, munich germany, portugal, premier league, SID German, skipper, South Africa, stuttgart, thomas mueller, Van Gaal, werder bremen, world cup germany

Ribery angling for Real Madrid deal – media

January 22, 2010

Bayern Munich’s French star Franck Ribery is angling for a new deal that would allow him to join Real Madrid if the Spaniards put 40 million euros on the table, AS daily reported.

Ribery “would only renew his (Bayern) contract with a 40 million pro-Real clause” included, according to AS, which added that otherwise “Ribery will not sign”.

The paper, citing “sources very close to the player,” said that talks were under way between the two clubs regarding an eventual move and that the sum “would be around 40 million euros”.

That would be less than the purported 55 million figure bandied around last summer for the former Marseille man, whose contract expires next year.

Ribery has endured a difficult time recently with injuries having kept him sidelined since early October and Bayern coach Louis van Gaal indicated earlier on Friday that he would not start Saturday’s match against Werder Bremen but might be brought on from the bench.

Owing to a serious knee problem Ribery, 26, has only made six league appearances this season. He was due to return in December but a foot injury suffered in training prevented him from doing so.

Then in a winter training camp in Dubai he suffered from inflamed toenails that meant he could not even put his boots on.

AS, meanwhile, added that Real were hoping to snap up Roma midfielder Daniele de Rossi, reporting that the Italians were ready to sell for financial reasons.

Real are also rumoured to want Racing Santander youngster Sergio Canales but Marca sports daily reported that Real were not prepared to get into an auction for the 18-year-old, who the paper said also interests Manchester City and Chelsea.

MADRID (AFP)

Tags: Bayern, bayern munich, Bremen, canales, CHELSEA, citing sources, de rossi, foot injury, franck ribery, french star, italians, knee problem, league appearances, louis van gaal, MADRID, manchester city, Marseille, midfielder, new deal, real madrid, Roma, santander, Sergio Canales, spaniards, werder bremen, winter training, youngster

Goalkeeping trio to make World Cup: Loew

January 20, 2010

More than four months before the World Cup starts, Germany coach Joachim Loew said Wednesday goalkeepers Rene Adler, Tim Wiese and Manuel Neuer will all travel to South Africa.

Leverkusen shot-stopper Adler is his current first-choice, but Loew insists the performances of both Bremen’s Wiese and Schalke’s Neuer for the national team and their respective Bundesliga clubs means all three will travel.

Loew already has the three goalkeepers he needs for the tournament which runs from June 11 to July 11 and says he cannot imagine another shot-stopper will come into contention.

“The situation is crystal clear,” Loew told German magazine Sport Bild.

“We have three goalkeepers who have absolute priority and will travel to the World Cup, because for one or two years they have put in top class performances.

“There is no occasion, I can see, where we favour another goalkeeper as anything other than fourth choice, unless one of them gets injured.”

Dortmund’s Roman Weidenfeller has been in good form recently with his side up to fifth in the Bundesliga and is the only realistic candidate at this stage who could force his way into contention.

BERLIN (AFP)

Tags: absolute priority, berlin, Bremen, Bundesliga, class performances, contention, first choice, four months, german magazine, Germany, Goalkeeper, goalkeepers, goalkeeping, joachim loew, LEVERKUSEN, magazine sport, manuel neuer, rene adler, roman weidenfeller, Schalke, South Africa, sport bild, Tim Wiese, World Cup

Kuranyi proves his worth to fire Schalke second

January 17, 2010

Ex-Germany striker Kevin Kuranyi proved his worth by sealing Schalke 04’s 1-0 win over Nuremberg on Sunday, to put the Royal Blues second in the Bundesliga, despite nearly being sold over the winter break.

The 27-year-old, who notoriously walked out on the Germany team in October 2008, struck in the 48th minute with his ninth league goal of the season to put Schalke second, a point behind leaders Leverkusen.

Before the game, Schalke coach Felix Magath admitted he had wanted to sell the striker to English side Sunderland earlier this month for a reported four million euros to ease the club’s debts, but the player had scuppered the deal.

“We reached an agreement with a club, but Kevin decided he wanted to stay and achieve something with Schalke this season,” said Magath.

Last December, Kuranyi became one of a select few players to have scored 100 goals in the Bundesliga and is out of contract in June.

On Saturday, VfB Stuttgart kept their unbeaten record under coach Christian Gross with a 3-1 victory over champions VfL Wolfsburg to seal their first Bundesliga win since September.

Former Tottenham boss Gross took over after Markus Babbel was sacked last December and having put his side in the Champions League’s last 16, Gross recorded his first Bundesliga win and it came against the defending champions.

This was Stuttgart’s first win in 11 games with goals by Robert Hilbert, Pavel Pogrebnyak and Timo Gebhart with a consolation from Edin Dzeko.

The win leaves Stuttgart 12th in the league while Wolfsburg are now ninth and will buoy Gross’s side with Stuttgart set to face defending European champions Barcelona in the last 16 of the Champions League next month.

Earlier, Bayer Leverkusen came from behind to beat mid-table Mainz 4-2 and reclaim top spot after Bayern Munich had temporarily taken charge.

Bayern’s 2-0 win over Hoffenheim on Friday night had briefly given them a one-point advantage, but Leverkusen regained pole position.

Bottom side Hertha Berlin got their 2010 off to a great start as they enjoyed a 3-0 win at Hanover in what was only their second win since the opening day of the season.

Polish midfielder Lukasz Piszczek netted in the 30th minute to get the capital club on the way before Brazil’s Raffael made it 2-0 after 33 minutes and Greek striker Theofanis Gekas hit the third with 10 minutes remaining.

Berlin are still three points from nearest rivals Nuremberg and eight points from escaping the bottom three, but the win will have boosted their confidence.

Hamburg are now fourth after their 2-0 win at home to Freiburg as Germany midfielder Marcell Jansen and Croatia striker Mladen Petric scored either side of half-time.

Werder Bremen are sixth after their 1-0 defeat at Eintracht Frankfurt – their fourth straight league defeat.

BERLIN (AFP)

Tags: Barcelona, bayer leverkusen, bayern munich, berlin, bottom side, Bremen, christian gross, croatia, edin dzeko, european champions, felix magath, gebhart, Germany, Hanover, hertha berlin, Hoffenheim, Kevin, Kevin Kuranyi, league goal, markus babbel, mid table, nuremberg, Pavel Pogrebnyak, point advantage, Raffael, robert hilbert, royal blues, schalke 04, stuttgart, Sunderland, Timo Gebhart, unbeaten record, vfb stuttgart

German striker Klose hitting World Cup form

January 16, 2010

Germany’s number one striker Miroslav Klose looks set to again terrorise defences at this summer’s World Cup after the Bayern Munich star admitted he is recapturing his best form.

With 48 goals in 93 appearances for Germany, the 31-year-old has a deserved reputation as a lethal finisher having been both the top-scorer at the 2006 World Cup and also in qualification for this year’s global tournament.

But Klose has struggled with injury this season which limited him to just eight Bundesliga starts and he began Friday’s 2-0 win over Hoffenheim on the bench as third-choice striker for Bayern.

Having scored twice for Munich in the 3-1 friendly win over Basel last Tuesday, Klose then broke his Bundesliga drought with a late goal against Hoffenheim to prove his form to both Bayern coach Louis van Gaal and national handler Joachim Loew.

“My goal was to start 2010 well,” said the Poland-born forward.

“The warm-up friendly went well, and now I?ve scored again at last.

“I?m hoping to recapture my best form.”

Klose is battling Germany team-mate Mario Gomez and Croatia forward Ivica Olic for one of the two strikers roles and Gomez admitted last week: “I always feel Miro breathing down my neck in training”.

Bayern face title-rivals Bremen, mid-table Mainz, who beat them earlier this season, and defending champions Wolfsburg in the next few weeks, but van Gaal now has an abundance of strikers who are in form.

“It’s very competitive among the forwards, but we all get on very well together,” said Klose.

“Our rivalry in training is hard but fair, and it?s nice for the coach to have such a great choice.

“The start to the second half of the season is challenging, but we want to extend our good run.”

While Klose has had to prove himself at Bayern, he is without question Germany’s Number One striker in the eyes of national trainer Loew.

“I do not have any concerns about Miro,” Loew told television channel ARD.

“I have known him for a long time, he will play for Bayern throughout the rest of the season and will have match fitness under his belt.”

BERLIN (AFP)

Tags: Bayern, bayern munich, berlin, Bremen, Bundesliga, croatia, deserved reputation, drought, forwards, Germany, global tournament, Hoffenheim, joachim loew, klose, last tuesday, louis van gaal, mario gomez, mid table, miroslav klose, Munich, rivalry, rivals, team mate, television channel, third choice, top scorer

Fulham, Valencia face do-or-die Europa League ties

December 16, 2009

Fulham, Valencia, Genoa and Lille are among the sides bidding to reach the knockout stage of the Europa League as the competition’s group phase reaches its conclusion this week.

Premier League representatives Fulham are looking to join Roma in qualifying from Group E but face a winner-takes-all match at Swiss outfit Basel on Wednesday.

“We entered (the tournament) for experience and for the joy it gives our supporters and we’ve given them fantastic value at home in all the games we’ve played,” said Fulham coach Roy Hodgson.

“We’ve certainly not let ourselves down away from home. We won’t let ourselves down in Basel. We want to win, we’d like to win and we’ll try to win, don’t worry about that.”

Group B announced itself as the tournament’s most difficult pool at the group stage draw and Valencia, Lille and Genoa can all qualify going into their final matches in the group, with leaders Valencia hosting Genoa and Lille taking on Czech side Slavia Prague in northern France.

FC Copenhagen travel to Sparta Prague with both sides level on seven points in Group K, while Lille’s compatriots Toulouse have a must-win game at Club Brugge, who are a point above Alain Casanova’s team in Group J.

“It’s the final of the group. It will be decided between them and us,” said Toulouse captain Etienne Didot.

“We knew that after drawing against Bruges at home (2-2) we would definitely have to win there to qualify. We’re going there convinced that we can qualify and I think we’re going to do it.”

Fifteen clubs have already made sure of a place in the knockout phase, including Everton, Villarreal, Roma, Werder Bremen, Benfica and defending champions Shakhtar Donetsk, last season’s UEFA Cup winners.

The list of top-rank contenders for the inaugural trophy now also features the eight third-placed teams from the Champions League group stage, with Liverpool, Juventus and German champions Wolfsburg likely to pose the biggest threat to the sides already in the competition.

The draw for the round of 32 takes place at UEFA’s headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday.

PARIS (AFP)

Tags: Alain Casanova, benfica, Bremen, brugge, champions league group, club brugge, compatriots, copenhagen, czech side, fc copenhagen, fulham, genoa, german champions, group phase, group stage, knockout stage, Lille, Liverpool, northern france, PARIS, PRAGUE, premier league, roy hodgson, seven points, sparta prague, Switzerland, top rank, Toulouse, uefa cup winners, Valencia, Villarreal, werder bremen

Rebel Kuranyi hoping for World Cup redemption

December 15, 2009

Ex-Germany striker Kevin Kuranyi is hoping his recent good performances for Schalke 04 will help convince national coach Joachim Loew to select the rebel forward for next year’s World Cup.

“The question for me is: how can I manage to change another person’s opinion?” Kuranyi told football magazine 11 Freunde.

“This is not just about coach of the national team Loew and the player Kuranyi and I hope that I one day I will get a new chance.”

The chances of Kuranyi being on the plane to South Africa for next summer’s World Cup are slim after he walked out at half-time of Germany’s 2-1 win over Russia in October 2008 during a World Cup qualification match.

The 27-year-old was left out of the matchday squad and stormed out of the stadium in Dortmund before asking a friend to collect his possessions from the team hotel.

He later apologised to Loew for his conduct, but the Germany coach has repeatedly said he will not select Kuranyi again for Germany despite the Schalke forward’s 19 goals for his country in 52 international matches.

With eight goals to his credit in 15 league matches this season, Kuranyi netted in last weekend’s 2-0 win over Werder Bremen which put his side second in the table behind leaders Bayer Leverkusen.

BERLIN (AFP)