BERLIN: German giants Bayern Munich are irritated by suggestions they are the outsiders in their high-stakes Champions League last 16 tie against Bayer Leverkusen. Bayern host Xabi Alonso´s defending German champions in Munich on Wednesday, with the return leg the following Tuesday in Leverkusen.
With resources and history that dwarf anyone else in Germany, Bayern are almost always the favourites when taking on other German teams, regardless of venue or competition.
But pundits and bookmakers alike have tipped Leverkusen to make it through to the quarter finals, raising the ire of the Bavarians, particularly with Munich hosting this year´s final. Since appearing in back-to-back finals in 2012 and 2013, Bayern have only once failed to make it past the last 16 stage in 13 seasons — when they lost to Jurgen Klopp´s eventual champions Liverpool.
Bayern powerbroker Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who alongside Uli Hoeness grew the club into a European powerhouse, said his team felt slighted and would react. “Everyone has declared Bayer Leverkusen the favourite. I know our team — and it pisses them off.”
In six matches against Bayern since he took over as Leverkusen manager in October 2022, Xabi Alonso has never lost, with three draws and three victories. In three seasons in midfield for Bayern, Alonso never lost against Leverkusen in six matches — a remarkable record in the fixture both as a player and a coach.
In December, defending German Cup champions Leverkusen eliminated Bayern from the competition with a 1-0 win in Munich. In that match, Bayern captain and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer picked up the first red card of his long career after a rash, rugby-style challenge on Jeremie Frimpong outside the box.
The collision, which left Neuer with a broken rib, suggested Leverkusen had gotten under Bayern´s skin. In the most recent encounter between the two clubs, in February in Leverkusen, Bayern were thoroughly outplayed, failing to register a shot on target for just the second time in a league game since 1992.
The match however finished in a scoreless draw which kept Bayern´s eight-point lead atop the table and on track to win back the Bundesliga, suggesting the normally dominant Bayern can be pragmatic when necessary under coach Vincent Kompany.
Veteran midfielder Thomas Mueller, a two-time Champions League winner with Bayern, suggested those tipping Leverkusen to dump his side out of the tournament were not seeing the full picture. “Leverkusen are very clearly the favourites if you listen to German pundits,” Mueller said on Friday.
