“We’re very lucky to be able to make history.” Like Joshua Kimmich, the players of the Bayern Munich want to add to their five – title Grand Slam in 2020 a sixth trophy: the Club World Cup in Qatar.
This Monday (12:00 pm from Honduras) in Rayan, very close to Doha, the European champions face their semifinal against the Egyptian club Al-Ahly, winner of the African Champions League.
“It’s a team that has the ambition to play football and has a lot of offensive solutions. Its side defenses are also very offensive,” Bavarian coach Hansi Flick said on Sunday, asking his players not to underestimate the ‘rival.
If they win, the Germans will play in the final on Thursday against tigers of Mexico, who defeated Brazilian Palmeiras 1-0 on Sunday.
“Let’s go to Club World Cup with the very clear goal of bringing the trophy to Munich. Six trophies from the same season, so far only FC Barcelona has done it, “said Bayern boss Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, full of enthusiasm.
– Ambitious players –
the Bayern he won the Bundesliga and German Cup, the Champions League and the German and European Super Cups in 2020.
In 2013, the ‘Rekordmeister’ had won five trophies out of six, including the Club World Cup, But did not win the German Super Cup, which he ceded to his great rival at the time, Borussia Dortmund.
“Wanting to win everything always, has long been inscribed in the DNA of this club,” Rummenigge recalled, revealing an episode of club life that illustrates this mindset.
When a few months ago there was talk of canceling the World Cup because of the coronavirus, he counted Rummenigge, Hansi Flick and a delegation of players from the team went to see him to ask him to speak to his friend Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, to convince him to play the tournament anyway.
Rummenigge says this gesture impressed him: “They won all of 2020, they have a hellish schedule, but they want even more,” he explained.
“We absolutely wanted to play this tournament,” Flick confirmed. “We know we have to face fatigue, but we came motivated, and crowning an extraordinary season with a sixth title is a great motivation,” the coach added.
– Bayern tired –
A mishap at Berlin airport on Friday added even more pressure. When it was due to take off at the end of the night to arrive in Doha at around 07:00 the next morning, the team’s plane landed in the German capital and they were only able to leave on Saturday. .
In terms of sports, the Bayern he arrives tired, but his offensive potential (3 goals per game on average this season) continues to make a difference: he has five consecutive Bundesliga victories.
“We always analyze our game by saying that the Bayern it’s not as dominating as last season. But we must not forget that last year was absolutely exceptional for us, “said Thomas Müller recently.
“We’ve had a short winter break to regain strength. We have an excellent squad. It’s important to have that reserve of players and that we can make changes,” midfielder Joshua Kimmich said this Sunday.
“To say we have too many matches is not really a valid excuse. The conditions are met for us to have a good tournament,” the player added.
The champions of Germany arrive almost completely in Qatar. Only Leon Goretzka and Javi Martínez, who tested positive for coronavirus, stayed in Munich.
Since 2013, the Club World Cup has always been won by the European representative and the Bayern wants to extend this domain.