Top versus bottom, the champions against relegation candidates - there could hardly be two more diametrically opposed teams on Matchday 31 in Bayern’s away game at Eintracht Braunschweig on Saturday (Live in English from 3.30 pm CET on Twitter and FCB.tv Web Radio). While a defeat for the hosts would sink them further into the relegation mire, the reigning and confirmed new champions of Germany are looking to fine-tune their performance levels ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final tie at Real Madrid.
“We need to produce a great display and move up to top gear,” declared Arjen Robben, who is convinced the game against the team from Lower Saxony is “possibly more important” than the DFB Cup semi-final against FC Kaiserslautern last Wednesday: “We need to be ready for the match against Real.” Thomas Müller added: “We face some challenges on Saturday - to put on a good performance, to get back into the groove, and get used to playing well again. We’ll be in with a good shout in Madrid if we can do that.”
Head coach Pep Guardiola shares that opinion. “We need to have a good game against Braunschweig to be able to perform in Madrid,” said the Spaniard before the final pre-match session at the Säbener Strasse training ground on Good Friday. “We’ve got to focus on playing our game again, both up front and at the back, to put us in the right mood for the Madrid match.” The encounter with the Lower Saxony side fighting to stay up comes at just the right time. “We know how important the game is for Braunschweig.”