In "Wort zum Sonntag", Thomas Müller, as an expert in the final, gives his teammates a few valuable tips for the test of strength against Paris. Bring the handle pot, is the motto for the last Munich triple step. Can Flick beat opponent Tuchel?
Lisbon (dpa) - The tension is growing. In the "Penha Longa Resort" outside Lisbon, the final preparations of FC Bayern Munich for the soccer game of the year are underway.
At 9:00 p.m. German time, the Italian Daniele Orsato will whistle in the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon for the 28th Champions League final between the German soccer champion and French champion Paris Saint-Germain. It will be a final that will be unique because of the special conditions in the Corona crisis without fans in the stands.
Bavaria's final expert Thomas Müller gives his colleagues valuable tips on mental approaches. "We shouldn't hesitate and shouldn't let the importance of this game too much in our heads. The tension has to be turned into joy. That's my word for Sunday," said the 30-year-old attacker, who after the defeats in 2010 and 2012 and the 2013 triumph in Portugal will contest his fourth final. "You have to seize the chance you have now. That's why we have to be there," said Müller.
SETUP POKER: Bavaria's Hansi Flick and PSG opponent Thomas Tuchel have to make tricky personnel decisions. Is Jérôme Boateng really fit again after muscular problems? And does Flick trust France's world champion Benjamin Pavard to take over the guarding of PSG star Neymar after his foot injury? "I'm not sure he's one hundred percent fit," said Flick. Tactics? Deflection? The answer won't come until evening.
The Bayern coach also left open whether he would again rely on Ivan Perisic on the left attacking side. "It's our third game in a week and we have to see how the strength looks," said Flick. So is Kingsley Comen coming? PSG coach Thomas Tuchel is also pondering two possible changes. Keylor Navas, three-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid, could return to goal after injury. Marco Verratti, who was also recently hit, is an option for midfield. However, Tuchel said on Saturday evening: "A final is not a game for big changes."
GOAL RECORD: Two days after his 32nd birthday Robert Lewandowski wants to celebrate a double triple. After the championship and the DFB Cup victory, the club will win the Champions League title, which he is still missing in his career. In 2013, the Pole lost the German final in Wembley with 1: 2 against FC Bayern while still wearing the Borussia Dortmund jersey. Lewandowski could finish all three competitions as top scorer. After the Bundesliga (34 goals) and the DFB-Pokal (6 goals), he also leads the premier class ranking with 15 goals and is virtually impossible to catch. Lewandowski could pack the season record of superstar Cristiano Ronaldo (17 goals) with a creamy day against PSG.
LÖW THUMBS UP: Joachim Löw (60) does not hide who he is keeping his fingers crossed for in front of the television. "Because of my special and friendly relationship with Hansi, Thomas Tuchel will surely fail to see that Hansi Flick would be particularly happy in the case of Bayern's Champions League victory," said the national coach. For understandable reasons: Flick (55) was Löw's assistant in the German national team from 2006 until the 2014 World Cup triumph. "Anything other than keeping his fingers crossed for me would have pissed me off," joked Flick on Saturday evening in Lisbon. By the way, Löw estimated the chances in the final between Bayern and PSG to be 50:50.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 200823-99-271227 / 2
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