Cup holders wary of tenacious St Pauli

FCBayernNews · News fetcher Joined: 31 Aug 2006 Posts: 1240 votes: 2

08.09.2006

Some 133 days since Bayern claimed a record 13th DFB German Cup triumph against Eintracht Frankfurt, the holders embark on their trophy defence with an eminently testing away trip to cult Hamburg outfit St Pauli on Saturday evening. Last season's giant killers may be languishing in the third division for the time being, but roared on by a raucous full house at the infamous Millerntor stadium, 'Pauli' will be determined to exact revenge for Bayern's 3-0 semi-final victory at the same ground some five months ago.

"The memories of our Cup run have come flooding back, and the adrenalin's flowing again. I want my team to play with tenacity and courage," Pauli coach Andreas Bergmann declared ahead of the classic David v Goliath clash. "We have something of a score to settle, and we'll do whatever we can to beat Bayern at our Millerntor stadium this time," midfielder Fabian Boll added.

Banned Kahn expecting tough encounter

The Bayern camp is fully prepared for the onslaught. "If we think we just have to turn up and win, we could be in for a nasty shock," warned chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. "Everyone knows how hard we were pushed by St Pauli in last season's semi-final. It'll be a very, very tough match," confirmed captain Oliver Kahn.

The keeper will not be able to lead from the front on this occasion, after a German Football Association (DFB) disciplinary tribunal handed the 37-year-old a one-match suspension following a review of the evidence from last season's Cup final, when Kahn is alleged to have engaged in unsportsmanlike behaviour towards the Eintracht fans. Michael Rensing will deputise, "and I don't think we'll miss Olli, because I don't believe our keeper will have a great deal to do. I think the Pauli keeper will have far more of a chance to show off his skills," Reds coach Felix Magath quipped.

Underdogs quietly confident

Nevertheless, the Bayern boss is not underestimating the scale of the task facing his troops. "St Pauli knocked out one or two top flight clubs last term, so we've been warned," he commented, predicting a tricky tussle against the side currently lying 14th in the third division north. "They'll take the fight to us and push us to the limit. We're the better footballing side, but we won't be able to exploit our superiority unless we're ready to match them for fighting spirit."

The match will undoubtedly have a physical character. "We'll go out there full of resolve and belief," Pauli assistant coach Andre Trulsen promised, although the underdogs' cause has not been helped by injuries to former Bundesliga players Daniel Stendel and Jens Scharping. However, top striker Felix Luz is eligible to play despite a suspension in the league, and towering defender Fabio Moreno summed up the minnows' quite confidence: "It's not exactly gone according to plan for us recently, but we can still pull it off on Saturday."

Probable line-ups:

St. Pauli: Reus - Lechner, Morena, Eger, Joy - Takyi, Boll, Rothenbach, Meggle - Luz, Mazingu-Dinzey

Bayern Munich: Kahn – Sagnol, Lucio, Van Buyten, Lahm – Hargreaves, Van Bommel, Demichelis, Schweinsteiger – Makaay, Podolski

Referee: Lutz Wagner (Hofheim)

MUTU

Ooh bad mistake by the guy who did the probable formations. They included Kahn, and in the same article they're saying he's suspended!

podolski4life

Lol wishful thinking got the better of him.
Aside from the goalie mistake, I think we've got a strong lineup.

Danger

strong line-up ...

kevh26

i don't like the midfield... only schweini is a real wide player, it's either hargreaves or demichelis in my opinion

MUTU

I think he'd intend to play Hargreaves as a RM. He's played wide before.

kevh26

not as convincingly as brazzo

MUTU

He's a very different player. But I'd rather have Hargreaves there, for these reasons:

1) Hargreaves can run as much as Brazzo
2) Hargreaves can throw in crosses better than Brazzo
3) Hargreaves can tackle better than Brazzo
4) Hargreaves is younger than Brazzo

In my opinion, Brazzo is only better at dribbling.

kevh26

brazzo's overall commitment to the team it amazing, I can't believe we haven't offered him a contract extension... and I rate brazzo's crosses slightly more highly, and he plays brilliantly with sagnol, they know how to work together when sagnol wants to get forward

MUTU

Brazzo is very commited, I agree, but Hargreaves is really determined as well. Salihamidzic perhaps also has better creativity, but I feel that he loses the ball too easily sometimes.