The Malta Independent 26 May 2024, Sunday
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High-flying Bayern Munich keen to stay grounded

Malta Independent Friday, 9 November 2012, 10:24 Last update: about 12 years ago

With confidence booming from its Champions League and Bundesliga rivals faltering, Bayern Munich might find the biggest danger to maintaining its fine early season form is complacency.

Club chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said 10 goals "would have been possible" in Wednesday's 6-1 thrashing of French side Lille "but then the euphoria would hit the roof. We don't need that."

Free-scoring Bayern is seven points clear of Schalke and Eintracht Frankfurt, with defending champion Borussia Dortmund a distant fifth in the Bundesliga. Bayern's main rivals all dropped points last weekend.

But Rummenigge is determined to maintain his players' focus as Bayern aims to make it 10 wins from 11 league games when Frankfurt visits Munich on Saturday.

"We have a wonderful advantage. But we have to stay just as focused and motivated when we take to the pitch on Saturday," Rummenigge said. "Frankfurt are playing a wonderful season. Now we just need to keep bringing in points, not suffer any defeats."

Dortmund are 11 points behind, and can ill afford another slip-up at Augsburg on Saturday.

"We eagerly want to gather points in Augsburg but won't underestimate the opponent," said Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp, whose side was narrowly denied a Champions League win over Real Madrid by Mesut Oezil's late goal from a free kick on Tuesday, two weeks after beating the Spanish side at home.

"Tuesday showed us how much fun football can be if you put everything into it."

Also on Saturday, Schalke host Werder Bremen, Freiburg play Hamburger SV and Hoffenheim visit Fortuna Duesseldorf.

On Sunday, fourth-place Bayer Leverkusen visit Wolfsburg, Stuttgart playsHannover and Greuther Fuerth host Borussia Moenchengladbach.

Nuremberg will get the 11th round underway at Mainz on Friday.

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