Preview: Rehden honored but not hopeful; Bayern looking to avoid a horrific upset
FC Magdeburg was the team which caused Bayern to lose out the treble in 2001. There was no such “treble-losing nightmare” last season when Bayern raised the DFB Pokal and two other trophies. Bayern will be coming into this match on the back of 12 wins out of 13 friendlies. However, they will not be playing with a full squad.
Holger Badstuber continues to be out with a long term injury. Mario Götze will not be fit for this one either. Luiz Gustavo, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Diego Contento are out due to minor injuries. Toni Kroos is fit to face Rehden after an injury scare against Manchester City in the Audi Cup. Rehden also has an injury worry. Their star man, former Bremen star, Francis Banecki has an Achilles injury.
Rehden’s Waldsportstätten ground is unsuitable to host the game; as a result, the match will be played in Osnabruck in the Osnatel Arena. This Arena can house nearly 17,000 fans. The entire village which backs Rehden is awaiting this tie; a total group of 1850 people as well as coach Predrag Uzelac are excited. However, nobody is even daring to utter the word ‘upset’.
“We're playing the best team in the world, unbelievable. We'll give it our best shot and play with passion, but there's no point entertaining big dreams."
These words were spoken by Uzelac. Bayern’s most negative personality (who day job is to occupy the position of Sporting Director), Matthias Sammer, as usual sounded plenty of warnings:
“We need ideas, conviction, focus and determination. We start again from scratch. No-one, and I mean no-one, is going to give us any presents.”
Karl Heinz Rummenigge on the other hand wants his team to ensure a trip to Berlin at the end of the season. Berlin is beckoning Bayern. The journey to the Pokal final last season was simply flawless. However, can Bayern repeat the wonderful journey this season? The season is about to truly get underway for the Bavarians against the minnows Rehden.
Where to watch the match - live stream, start time, TV channels
Watch Schwarz-Weiß Rehden vs. FC Bayern München live on Monday, August 5, 2013:
In Canada at 14:30 ET on Sportsnet World
In the USA at 14:30 ET on ESPN3
In addition, Al Jazeera Sport +7 will be bringing the game to many other parts of the world. Viewers in Germany can watch the match on Sky Sport HD1 amongst various other channels. You can view all the TV listings on this page.
