CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Matthäus, optimistic: “Bayern are slight favorites”
The German legend believes that Real Madrid got lucky in eliminating City in the quarter finals.
The city Munich and most of the rest of Europe is already trembling ahead of tomorrow’s Champions League semi-final first leg in which Bayern and Real Madrid go head to head at Allianz Arena. Some figures of Bayern’s glorious past cannot seem to agree on which team starts out as favorite. In an interview with Munich-based newspaper TZ, Klaus Augenthaler explained that he sees Ancelotti’s team edging past the Bavarians, a viewpoint that is not supported by another iconic German ex-player, Lothar Matthäus, the man with the most international caps in the history of Germany’s national team.
Madrid were lucky against City
Matthäus, who is an ambassador for the Interwetten betting house, is clear on how he sees the tie panning out: “From my point of view, it is an advantage that Real Madrid had some luck against Manchester City. For me, City is the best team at the moment. They were very unlucky to be eliminated on penalties. So, for me, Bayern is a slight favorite against Real Madrid,” Matthäus explained, before mentioning the tie between Dortmund and PSG: “BVB lost at the weekend against Leipzig 4-1, a completely deserved result, and it is evident that the players were already thinking about the semi-finals against PSG. I wouldn’t give too much importance to this defeat. Dortmund will once again show its ‘Champions side’ against the Parisians.”
Regarding the scuffle between the Bavarian coach Thomas Tüchel and the honorary president Uli Hoeness, the German legend was blunt: “Finding a coach who feels the total support at Bayern is a question of urgency right now. There are many people in charge and each one has their own ideas, which is why it is almost impossible for everyone to agree. Sometimes a Rummenigge favorite arrives, like Ancelotti, and sometimes a Hoeness favorite, like Kovac, arrives. Lately, coaches have only been in the job an average of 17 or 18 months. Hoeness’ criticism shows that there is a structural problem at Bayern. The one who makes the decisions has to be Max Eberl (sports director), not Hoeness,” Lothar concluded
Bayern Munich and Real Madrid are the two clubs with the most semi-final appearances in the Champions League/European Cup - Bayern with 21 and Madrid with 33 while 13 and 17 of those appearances respectively have been during the Champions League era.