Makaay fires back-to-basics message to struggling Bayern

Miss Dangerous...!!

Bayern Munich striker Roy Makaay had a back-to-basics message to teammates as they look to improve on their poor scoring record one week into Ottmar Hitzfeld's new reign with a Sunday fixture at home to Arminia Bielefeld.
Fourth-placed Bayern, for whom nothing less than winning the German league title will do for a season to be deemed a success, is 11 points behind leader Schalke 04. Crying or Very sad

The arrival last week of Hitzfeld, who took the club to the 2001 Champions League title, did not have the desired immediate effect with defeat to Nuremberg in his first match.

Bayern has found the net 32 times in 20 league matches, its worst goal- scoring haul since the 1991-92 season when it had only scored 27 at the same point, before ending the season in 10th spot - the club's worst final position in the past three decades.

"Sometimes it's good to return to the basics and go through the standard routines," Makaay said. "We've not forgotten how to score goals, but nothing's going our way, and it starts to chip away at your confidence."

Makaay added that simply scoring more often was not enough.

"It's all about recapturing our former strength," the striker said, adding: "We're letting in too many goals. Conceding very few goals was always a strength here at Bayern in the past.

"I'm convinced we'll soon base our attacking efforts on a solid defensive platform."

Bayern has earned just a single point and two goals from three matches in the second half of the campaign. Embarassed

Hitzfeld has vowed to improve the side's goal-scoring record and has made it a priority in his first few days in the job.

Schalke 04, which surged three points ahead of Werder Bremen following its 2-0 away victory last weekend, hosts Hertha Berlin, while Bremen has a trip to VfB Stuttgart.

"Of course we are delighted with this success," Schalke coach Mirko Slomka said following the win over Bremen.

"But we are working in just the same way as before and concentrating even better." Speak to the hand

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Miss Dangerous...!!

On the Arminia Bielefeld game, Makaay said: "It's an important game and we need to win. We want to close the gap to third place, not see it get bigger." Anxious

Schweini_rules

he better start scoring ...

Miss Dangerous...!!

We can`t blame the strikers if the midfielders couldn`t create good chances for them to score Anxious