Bayern Munich's incredible Bundesliga campaign

German Bundesliga record champions FC Bayern Munich have had an incredible Bundesliga campaign so far, having lost only one match all season and that against Bayer 04 Leverkusen at home.

The statistics don't really say it all, 23 matches played - 60 points and 63:8 goals, a positive goal difference of +55. Impressive to say the least, but the domination of Bayern Munich over the Bundesliga has been like never before and they have 23 Bundesliga titles to their name.

What makes it even more impressive for the Bavarians is the fact that they last season had finished second in the Bundesliga, German Cup and UEFA Champions League, a treble of runners-up finishes. Many had doubts if this team could regroup and challenge for the title in Germany, but this team with the additions of Dante, Javi Martinez, Xherdan Shaqiri, Mario Mandzukic and Claudio Pizarro has surpassed all expectations so far.

In the Bundesliga they are now an incredible 17 points ahead of Borussia Dortmund with 11 matches to play. Indirectly the title is already theirs, but the team wants maximum success and therefore they are continuing to push for the treble with Arsenal FC already more then half beaten through a 3-1 away win in the UEFA Champions League pre-quarterfinals while in the German Cup Borussia Dortmund after the opponents on Wednesday in the quarterfinals at the Allianz Arena.

Bayern Munich expand Allianz Arena capacity to 71,000

German Bundesliga giants FC Bayern Munich have with immediate effect increased the capacity of their Allianz Arena by 2,000 seats from 69,000 to 71,000 for domestic matches and from 66,000 to 68,000 for international fixtures.

The expansion has been made possible by adding a new last row of seats in the top tier of the Allianz Arena. The necessary clearances have been received by Bayern Munich from the local Munich authorities and the expansion will be valid from Sunday's first home Bundesliga fixture of the season against VfB Stuttgart.

This is the second such expansion at the Allianz Arena after the capacity had been increased from 66,000 to 69,000 for domestic matches, while it remained at 66,000 for international matches.

The new seats are exclusively reserved for general sale, i.e. cannot be booked as season tickets. For the first Bundesliga home fixture of the season, the clash with Stuttgart at 5.30 pm on Sunday, the additional tickets are available IMMEDIATELY from the Säbener Strasse ServiceCenter. Depending on demand, any remaining tickets may be on sale at the Arena on the day of the match. Further information follows in the course of the week.

This capacity increase was already taken into account in the club's logistics planning for the season. The Ticketing Centre has thus accepted a correspondingly higher number of advance orders for Bundesliga home matches. However, every FC Bayern league fixture at the Allianz Arena this season is already sold out and/or overbooked.

2012/13 German Cup: Draw out for Opening Round

Euro2012 is still on, but the draw for the first round of the 2012/13 German Cup (DFB Pokal) was held yesterday at the Media Centre of the German national football team in Gdansk, Poland. German women's national teams Viola Odebrecht and men's manager Oliver Bierhoff did the honour of pulling out the fixtures. And there are some really interesting clashes to look forward to.

Defending champions Borussia Dortmund have to travel to fourth division side FC Oberneuland, while record champions FC Bayern Munich travel to promoted 2.Bundesliga club Jahn Regensburg for a Bavarian derby. The sixth division SV Falkensee/Finkenkrug, the lowest side in this seasons competition, host VfB Stuttgart.

There also a number of regional derbies with Borussia Mönchengladbach having to travel to Alemannia Aachen, while SC Paderborn travel to Arminia Bielefeld while Chemnitzer FC host old rivals Dynamo Dresden.

The matches will be played between August 17 to 21, 2012.


ROUND 1

SG Sonnenhof Großaspach - FSV Frankfurt
Hallescher FC - MSV Duisburg
FC Nöttingen - Hannover 96
Wormatia Worms - Hertha BSC Berlin
FC Oberneuland - Borussia Dortmund
1. FC Heidenheim - VfL Bochum
Victoria Hamburg - SC Freiburg
SpVgg Unterhaching - 1. FC Köln
SV Falkensee/Finkenkrug - VfB Stuttgart
Karlsruher SC - Hamburger SV
VfR Aalen - FC Ingolstadt 04
Offenburger FV - FC St. Pauli
Arminia Bielefeld - SC Paderborn 07
FC Schönberg 95 - VfL Wolfsburg
Jahn Regensburg - FC Bayern München
Carl Zeiss Jena - Bayer 04 Leverkusen
SV Roßbach/Verscheid - 1. FSV Mainz 05
Berliner AK 07 - 1899 Hoffenheim
Preußen Münster - Werder Bremen
Kickers Offenbach - SpVgg Greuther Fürth
Erzgebirge Aue - Eintracht Frankfurt
Wacker Burghausen - Fortuna Düsseldorf
Chemnitzer FC - Dynamo Dresden
Alemannia Aachen - Borussia Mönchengladbach
SV Wilhelmshaven - FC Augsburg
Rot-Weiss Essen - 1. FC Union Berlin
TSV Havelse - 1. FC Nürnberg
SV Sandhausen - Energie Cottbus
VfB Lübeck - Eintracht Braunschweig
FC Hennef 05 - 1860 München
1. FC Saarbrücken - FC Schalke 04
Hansa Rostock - 1. FC Kaiserslautern

2011/12 German Cup: Semifinal draw out

The draw for the semifinals of the 2011/12 German Cup (DFB Pokal) were held Saturday evening as part of the ZDF Sportstudio. German women's national team midfielder Kim Kulig did the honour of pulling out the fixtures along with German goalkeeping coach Andreas Köpke.

It was clear that the draw would create some mouth-watering clashes, then the remaining four clubs are the top three of the Bundesliga - Borussia Dortmund, FC Bayern München and Borussia Mönchengladbach along with top 2.Bundesliga side SpVgg Greuther Fürth.

The draw set-up showdowns between minnows SpVgg Greuther Fürth and Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund, while former champions Borussia Mönchengladbach would host record champions FC Bayern München.

The matches will be played on March 20/21.

SEMIFINALS
SpVgg Greuther Fürth - Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Mönchengladbach - FC Bayern München


QUARTERFINAL - Results

1899 Hoffenheim 0-1 SpVgg Greuther Fürth
Hertha BSC Berlin 0-2 Borussia Mönchengladbach (aet)
VfB Stuttgart 0-2 FC Bayern München
Holstein Kiel 0-4 Borussia Dortmund

Bayern's Schweinsteiger injured again

Germany and FC Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger is out for a few weeks after tearing ankle ligaments in last nights German Cup match against VfB Stuttgart. Former FC Bayern player Georg Niedermaier caught Schweinsteiger's ankle unintentionally and he had to limp off early in the match.

Schweinsteiger had only returned from a shoulder injury a few weeks ago, but now he is injured again and out for a few weeks. He had returned for FC Bayern at their camp in Qatar and then scored a brilliant long-ranger against Team India in New Delhi on January 10, but in the first three matches of the return-leg of the Bundesliga he wasn't as good as before the injury with has harmed Bayern's performances and results.

Following the ankle injury Schweinsteiger will have to wear a cast for a week before being given a special shoe to commence training.

About Schweinsteiger's return Bayern's club doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt said, "We will have to make a prediction as to when Bastian will be able to train or play again at a later date."

Due to the injury Schweinsteiger is set to miss the first-leg of the UEFA Champions League tie against FC Basel in a couple of weeks and he would also likely miss Germany's friendly against France a week later besides a number of Bundesliga ties.

Schweinsteiger: I aim for four titles!

German international and FC Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger has big plans for 2012. He wants to win all possible titles with club (UEFA Champions League, German Bundesliga, German Cup) and country (2012 European Championships) in the coming six months.

"If I could chose, then I would pick Champions League and Euro2012," says a recovering Schweinsteiger to German media, "but I would also like to win the Bundesliga and German Cup as well."

Typical Schweinsteiger it comes out cooly, but the 27 year old midfielder is much more mature then in the years gone by. He has the conviction that all this is achieveable.

Schweinsteiger had hoped to make a surprise comeback before the Bundesliga winter break, but coach Jupp Heynckes had vetoed any such move as he see's Schweinsteiger crucial to the clubs plans for the second half of the season.

But Schweinsteiger knows that winning the UEFA Champions League title would be tough with FC Barcelona currently the best football club side in the world, so he see's winning the Euro2012 title as a more realistic aim.

2011/12 German Cup: Quarterfinal draw out

The draw for the quarterfinals of the 2011/12 German Cup (DFB Pokal) were held Wednesday evening as part of the ARD Sportschau. German women's national team midfielder Melanie Behringer did the honour of pulling out the fixtures. And she did pull out some really mouth watering clashes.

The top match of the round will be the south Germany derby between VfB Stuttgart and record cup winners FC Bayern Munich. In another Bundesliga match-up Hertha BSC Berlin will host Borussia Mönchengladbach as Hertha continue to aim to reach the finals in their home stadium for the first time, while it marks the return of former Hertha coach Lucien Favre with his current club Gladbach.

1899 Hoffenheim host 2.Bundesliga SpVgg Greuther Fürth in a tricky fixture, while the only amateurs left in the competition fourth division side Holstein Kiel who host Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund.

The matches will be played on February 7/8.


QUARTERFINALS

1899 Hoffenheim - SpVgg Greuther Fürth
Hertha BSC Berlin - Borussia Mönchengladbach
VfB Stuttgart - FC Bayern München
Holstein Kiel - Borussia Dortmund

Dynamo Dresden thrown out of next years German Cup

2.Bundesliga side Dynamo Dresden have been thrown out of next seasons DFB Pokal (German Cup) by the German Football Association (DFB) due to disturbance and violence by its fans away to Borussia Dortmund in the German Cup last month.

"This verdict is designed to send out a strong signal. If we let things lie then it would only be a matter of time until someone dies," said DFB official Hans E. Lorenz, who announced the decision.

The move by the DFB had been expected to give a stern message against violent conduct and pryotechnics at stadiums and grounds across the country. Dresden created history by being the first team ever to be thrown out of the DFB Pokal competition.

In Dortmund fans from Dynamo Dresden had disrupted the match which even led to the game being halted a few times, the fans damaged property at the stadium and lit pyrotechnics, which is totally forbidden in German stadiums.

Dynamo president Andreas Ritter has made his disappointment clear. The club is being hurt due to the misconduct of a few 'so-called' fans. But what else can the DFB do to try and maintain order at stadiums?

In recent weeks there has been trouble at some grounds with especially clubs from the former East Germany effected by Dresden, Hansa Rostock and others.

German Cup: Round of 16 draw out

The draw for the pre-quarterfinals (Round of 16) of the 2011/12 German Cup (DFB Pokal) were held yesterday evening. German women's national team goalkeeper and captain Nadine Angerer did the honour of pulling out the fixtures. And there are some really interesting clashes to look forward to.

There are some mouth watering west German clashes on the cards. Defending cup winners FC Schalke 04 travel to Mönchengladbach, while Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund travel to 2.Bundesliga league leaders Fortuna Düsseldorf, who are unbeaten in 22 matches and have not lost in 21 home fixtures.

Record champions FC Bayern Munich have to travel to 2.Bundesliga side VfL Bochum, a club with which its fans have a fan friendship. In a heated Franken derby Nuremberg host high flying 2.Bundesliga neighbours Greuther Fürth, while the only remaining fourth division club in Holstein Kiel host FSV Mainz 05, who aren't having the best of seasons in the Bundesliga.

The matches will be played on December 20/21.


ROUND OF 16

VfB Stuttgart - Hamburger SV
1899 Hoffenheim - FC Augsburg
Hertha BSC Berlin - 1.FC Kaiserslautern
Fortuna Düsseldorf - Borussia Dortmund
Holstein Kiel - FSV Mainz 05
Borussia Mönchengladbach - FC Schalke 04
VfL Bochum - FC Bayern München
1.FC Nürnberg - SpVgg Greuther Fürth

German Cup: First Round full of surprises

The first round of the German Cup (DFB Pokal) has been played over the weekend with one match to be played tonight between 2.Bundesliga pacesetters Eintracht Branschweig and record champions FC Bayern München.

It has not been a good weekend for the top Bundesliga clubs. Already four clubs are out after losing against lower division rivals, while some had to struggle to move on. It started Friday night when ambitious fourth Division side RB Leipzig beat 2009 Bundesliga champions VfL Wolfsburg 3-2. Then on Saturday third Division 1.FC Heidenheim won 2-1 against SV Werder Bremen, who have been a number of times to the cup final in recent years; while Bayer 04 Leverkusen lost 3-4 in extra-time against 2.Bundesliga side Dynamo Dresden after having been 3-0 up. On Sunday then third Division SpVgg Unterhaching won 3-2 against SC Freiburg.

Meanwhile on Sunday 1899 Hoffenheim needed extra-time to win 3-1 against sixth Division Germania Windeck, while FSV Mainz 05 just about beat fifth Division SVN Zweibrücken 2-1 in extra-time with a regular goal and penalty not given for the minnows. Earlier on Saturday FC Augsburg needed a late minute goal in extra-time to win 2-1 against third Division RW Oberhausen.

Defending champions FC Schalke 04 scored the biggest win of the opening round, a 11-1 win against seventh Division C Teningen; while Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund, who have had problems in the cup in recent years, won 3-0 against third Division SV Sandhausen.


DFB POKAL - Round 1 Results

RW Essen 4-3 Union Berlin (on penalties)
RB Leipzig 3-2 VfL Wolfsburg
1.FC Saarbrücken 1-3 Erzgebirge Aue (in extra-time)
Jahn Regensburg 1-3 Borussia Mönchengladbach
Wehen Wiesbaden 1-2 VfB Stuttgart
VfL Osnabrück 2-3 TSV 1860 München (in extra-time)
BFC Dynamo Berlin 0-3 1.FC Kaiserslautern
Hallescher FC 0-2 Eintracht Frankfurt
1.FC Heidenheim 2-1 SV Werder Bremen
Dynamo Dresden 4-3 Bayer 04 Leverkusen (in extra-time)
Eintracht Trier 2-1 FC St. Pauli
Arminia Bielefeld 1-5 1.FC Nürnberg
RW Ahlen 0-10 SC Paderborn 07
SV Babelsberg 03 0-2 MSV Duisburg
VfB Oldenburg 1-2 Hamburger SV
Holstein Kiel 3-0 FC Energie Cottbus
SV Sandhausen 0-3 Borussia Dortmund
Kickers Emden 1-5 FSV Frankfurt (in extra-time)
Hansa Rostock 3-5 VfL Bochum (on penalties)
RW Oberhausen 1-2 FC Augsburg (in extra-time)
FC Oberneuland 1-4 FC Ingolstadt
SpVgg Unterhaching 3-2 SC Freiburg
Karlsruher SC 3-1 Alemannia Aachen
Eimsbüttler TV 0-10 SpVgg Greuther Fürth
Anker Wismar 0-6 Hannover 96
ZFC Meuselwitz 0-4 Hertha BSC Berlin
Germania Windeck 1-3 1899 Hoffenheim (in extra-time)
FC Teningen 1-11 FC Schalke 04
Hessen Kassel 0-3 Fortuna Düsseldorf
SVN Zweibrücken 1-2 FSV Mainz 05 (in extra-time)
SC Wiedenbrück 2000 0-3 1.FC Köln
Eintracht Branschweig - FC Bayern München (on Monday evening)

ETV Hamburg: A whole team leaves the club

It is a sad state of affairs at seventh division amateur side ETV Hamburg then the coaching staff and all players have resigned from the club ahead of one of the biggest matches in the history of the club.

ETV Hamburg is an unknown side in their own city compared to Hamburger SV and FC St. Pauli, but now they are getting some national coverage as they qualified for the German Cup (DFB Pokal) by winning the local Hamburg Cup. In the first round of the German Cup they will face 2.Bundesliga side SpVgg Greuther Fürth.

This game will bring the club 110,000 Euros in income, an incredible amount of money for a lower division side. The club management had worked out a formula with the team that 50% of the money would go to the players, while the other 50% would be used to finance a new artificial turf at the ETV Sports Complex.

But the coaches and players demanded as much as 75% of the money as they say we got the club into the German Cup so they deserve more of the money, while the clubs management stand is clear that they need the money for infrastructure development.

"We feel betrayed and blackmailed," coach Dennis Mitteregger had said. Mitteregger and the players withdrew their names as of June 30 from the roaster of the club, now ETV Hamburg is in search for new players not only to play the German Cup game but also the whole season.

The club president Frank Fechner says, "The club sees no opportunity to work together with this coach and these players any more."

A solution in this impasse looks unlikely.

Schalke 04 trash Duisburg, win German Cup

FC Schalke 04 ended their mixed season on a high with a 5-0 win against Ruhrgebiet (Ruhr area/district) rivals MSV Duisburg in the German Cup - DFB Pokal. The second division side were never really an opponent for their local Bundesliga rivals who won their fifth German Cup title.

Infront of a sellout 75,708 spectators at Berlin's Olympic Stadium it initially was an open game, but Schalke teenager Julian Draxler gave the royal blues an 18th minute lead with a lovely left-footer and four minutes later Dutch international striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar would double the lead with a nice strike off a brilliant Jefferson Farfan pass.

Thereafter Duisburg came into the game, but the second division side couldn't utilise their few chances through Sahan and Schaeffler with Schalke sealing the game in their favour in the 42nd minute when defender Benedikt Hoewedes headed in a corner.

After the break Schalke mainly controlled the game and added two more goals to finish 5-0. In the 55th minute Jose Manuel Jurado placed the ball nicely past MSV keeper David Yelldell off a pass from Huntelaar, while Huntelaar himself scored his teams fifth in the 70th minute after a defensive error.

"We played with great concentration and in the end it was, thank God, a clear result," said Schalke coach Ralf Rangnick. "It's great to end the season with the title. We're proud of the club."

For former Real Madrid striker Raul Gonzalez led the celebrations with a Spanish flag and his trademark bullfighting routine and the 33-year-old said after the game, "I had to come to Germany to win the cup. I'm very proud and happy to have won it. This must be celebrated. We're back in Europe."

VfB Stuttgart vs Bayern Munich: Twice in four days

These are the kind of stories that only football, the beautiful game, can write. German Bundesliga rivals VfB Stuttgart and FC Bayern Munich would meet twice in four days and that too at the same venue, Stuttgart's Mercedes Benz Arena just before the Christmas break. Last Sunday, December 19, they faced each other in the league and last evening they would meet again 73 hours later, only in a different competition, the German Cup - the DFB Pokal.

Just looking at the pure stats - 17 goals scored in two matches. Bayern Munich coming out as winners in both the games, a 5-3 on Sunday and then a 6-3 last night. It was some interesting football, really entertaining games.

Stuttgart went into this unusual double header by changing their coach over the weekend earlier firing inexperienced Jens Keller and bringing in Bruno Labbadia, a former Bayern Munich striker. The reason being that the club from the southwest of Germany is surprisingly fighting against relegation from the Bundesliga. And in Stuttgart Bayern has suffered some unwanted defeats over the years.

On Sunday Stuttgart looked initially better, but three quick goals between the 31st to 43rd minute from Mario Gomez, Thomas Mueller and Franck Ribery gave Bayern a good looking 3-0 half time lead. At this stage it looked an easy game for the Bavarians, but five more goals would be scored in a crazy second session. First Stuttgart reduced the deficit through substitute Martin Harnik before Mario Gomez would score two more to give Bayern a comfortable 5-1 lead, but then Stuttgart would close in on the champions with another goal from Harnik and Christian Gentner to reduce the deficit to 5-3. And suddenly Bayern looked vulnerable, but Stuttgart on this day just didn't have the quality to stop Bayern from winning.

After last Sunday's game many thought that the German Cup match wouldn't be such a thriller, but actually it was even more intense and had ups and downs for both sides. The game quickly got out of the blocks with an Andreas Ottl long ranger and Mario Gomez goal giving Bayern a 2-0 lead by the 8th minute and it looked like in the match on Sunday that Bayern could win easy, but once more Bayern looked over-confident and started making mistakes. Two goals from Russian Pavel Progrebnyak for Stuttgart would take the match on even terms into half time and anything looked possible from there on.

And Stuttgart came out as the better side after the break, but once more Bayern Munich would take the lead and this time substitute Miroslav Klose would score the 3-2 in the 54th minute. Thereafter it was often one way traffic towards the Bayern goal with Stuttgart's Harnik hitting the crossbar but they were reduced to ten men as Khalid Boulahrouz received his second yellow card. It looked all over for Stuttgart, but that wasn't the case as things became more and more hectic as the match was moving towards its climax. In the 74th minute Stuttgart got a penalty as Hans-Joerg Butt brought down Cacau, but he made up for his mistake by blcoking Christian Gentner's shot. Still only three minutes later Stuttgart got their 3-3 equaliser through a header from Matthieu Delpierre. And now anything seemed possible. But Bayern Munich got the control of the match back as Thomas Mueller and Miroslav Klose would score to make it 5-3. Would it be a déjà-vu? But first Delpierre would also get his second yellow card to reduce Stuttgart to nine men and it was all over as Bayern Munich played out the last few minutes, but there was one left as Franck Ribery would score off a rare header late in stoppage time to make it 6-3.

Some players said afterwards that they were happy that they have a break now after those crazy two games, while the pitch will be happy to get some break after three matches in six days which has destroyed the playing surface in this terrible weather.

German Cup: Full of surprises

The second round of the German Cup (DFB Pokal) was once more full of surprises. The matches were played over the last couple of evenings and it was once more the cup of surprises with lower division teams able to beat top division sides, while others stretched them to the limit. It was interesting to see that current Bundesliga form counts little as top duo Mainz 05 and Borussia Dortmund where thrown out of the competition.

Amongst the biggest upsets on Wednesday night was that second division Alemannia Aachen brought high flying FSV Mainz 05 crashing down to earth with a 2-1 victory at home at the New Tivoli Stadium. Mainz, top of the Bundesliga, could never show their attacking game against a highly charged-up Alemannia whose players seemed to fight for their lives.

Second in the Bundesliga table Borussia Dortmund had the tricky task of having to face 3.Liga league leaders Kickers Offenbach at the Bieberer Berg. It was a high voltage game, but low on quality which had to end in a penalty shootout. There experienced Offenbach keeper Robert Wulnikowski turned to be the hero blocking to penalties from Dortmund to give the third division club a memorable 4-2 win.

Fourth Division Chemnitzer FC, the home club of Michael Ballack, were able to hold VfB Stuttgart to a one-all draw after 90 minutes, but in extra time the East Germans suffered a red card expulsion to captain Andreas Richter and substitute Martin Harnik completed his hattrick for Stuttgart to save the Bundesliga club the blushes. In round one Chemnitz had beaten another Bundesliga club in FC St. Pauli.

2.Bundesliga Energie Cottbus are known as a side which can cause upsets in the German Cup and in 1997 they had actually reached the cup final. And they proved that they are a cup side once more on Tuesday night when they beat high flying SC Freiburg 2-1 in an interesting encounter.

Mid-table third division side Tus Koblenz scored an upset win against 2.Bundesliga league leaders Hertha BSC Berlin, who have had a strong season so far. But the club from Berlin could never show on Tuesday evening what they are capable of, while Koblenz played a solid game. The 1-0 lead was a once in a lifetime goal from Michael Stahl, who until last season played seventh division football. Stahl wanted to clear the ball in his own half, but the ball travelled all the way into the Hertha goal, 61 metres in total. And in the end Koblenz were deservingly 2-1 winners.

The pick of the matches was the replay of last seasons final FC Bayern Munich against SV Werder Bremen. This meant that for one of the teams round two would be the end of this seasons cup campaign. Would it be record champions Bayern or Werder, who in the last couple of years had played the club final. And German international Bastian Schweinsteiger would decide the game with two goals for Bayern in a close 2-1 win for the Bavarians. Bremen took an early second minute lead through Claudio Pizarro. Bayern would score a bizarre equaliser as Toni Kroos would not properly connect to a shot, but Schweinsteiger infront of goal and not offside would tap in. But in the second half Schweinsteiger would seal the match with a lovely long distance effort to win it for Bayern and end Werder's cup campaign 2010/11.

Bayern win German Cup in style

FC Bayern Munich trashed SV Werder Bremen 4-0 in the German Cup (DFB Pokal) final at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin last night.

It was another demonstration of strength by the Bavarian giants, who towards the end of the season are showing what the Louis van Gaal coached side are really made off.

On the night Bayern won a record 15th DFB Pokal title and also their eighth German double of league and cup.


Initially it wasn't just one way traffic for Bayern, but goalkeeper Hans Joerg Butt kept his team in the game as both sides had their chances. But the longer the game lasted the better Bayern got.

But Bayern got their first goal of a penalty after Per Mertesacker handled the ball in the box in the 35th minute and referee Thorsten Kinhoefer pointed to the dreaded spot. And Arjen Robben blasted a left footer into the right hand corner of the Bremen net. Bayern went with a 1-0 lead into the break.

Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf seemed to have found the right words in his half time speech as Bremen came out looking for the equaliser, but they couldn't utilise their chances as Bayern scored their second in the 51st minute when Ivica Olic scored of an Arjen Robben corner.

This seemed to kill Bremen's morale and Bayern added a third in the 63rd minute through Frank Ribery of a counter attack with a placed shot past Bremen keeper Tim Wiese. Bremen were reduced to ten men when captain Thorsten Frings was shown his second yellow card of the game for a rough tackle on Bastian Schweinsteiger. But by this time the match was already decided.

And it was left to Schweinsteiger to add Bayern's fourth in the 83rd minute. Lahm played a long cross ball to the left, Schweinsteiger controlled the ball with his chest before placing the ball past the keeper. A class goal by the German international midfielder.


And Bayern Munich still have to play the season finale, the UEFA Champions League final on Saturday, May 22 against Internationale Milan at the Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid.

Their confidence level will surely have received another boast, but was has been impressive over the last few weeks is the way the team has been playing better and better.

If they can also win the Champions League title then they will achieve a rare treble, something which no German club has ever achieved before. Following in the footsteps of FC Barcelona, who had won a record six titles last year.