Bayern ready for ‘ballsy’ battle in Leverkusen

BERLIN: Thomas Mueller says holders Bayern Munich must show some ‘balls’ at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday (today) when two giants of German football clash for a place in the German Cup’s semi-finals.
With the Munich giants ten points clear in the Bundesliga and fourth-placed Bayer on course for a Champions League place next season, the clash at Leverkusen’s BayArena is the stand-out tie of the quarter-finals.
“You need to have some balls for that, it’s the cup quarter-finals, there is definitely a bit of spice in this one,” said Germany forward Mueller in his own unique style.
Leverkusen warmed up with a 4-0 rout of Hamburg at home last Saturday while Bayern ground out a 1-0 win at Borussia Dortmund with an untypically defensive display.
Bayern have a lengthy injury list with wingers Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery, plus left-back David Alaba out of the cup quarter-final with long-term ailments.
Defensive midfielder and Germany captain Bastian Schweinsteiger is also out after limping off against Dortmund with an ankle injury.
“He is definitely not going to play,” insisted Bayern coach Pep Guardiola on Tuesday.
But Bayern remain the team to beat, according to Leverkusen’s former striker Stefan Kiessling, as Leverkusen bid to repeat their 2009 last eight win over Bayern when Kiessling scored in a 4-2 home win.
Leverkusen went on to lose 1-0 to Werder Bremen in the 2009 final and since then Bayern have won the cup three more times.
They are the record holders by winning the cup 17 times since the competition began in 1953.
“Whoever wants to win the German Cup has to beat Bayern as some point,” said the 31-year-old Kiessling.
“We have them now in the quarter-finals, we had them at home a few years ago at the same stage and we beat them to reach the final.
“We want to win and our goal is to reach the final once more, so that means we’ll give it our all.”
Leverkusen are certainly in line to beat Bayern as both Borusssia Moenchengladbach and Wolfsburg, two of the sides above them in the Bundesliga table, have sprung shock defeats on Munich this season.