Bavarians side, Bayern Munich host the Portuguese champions Benfica in their Champions League quarter-final tie, hoping to solve all in the first game, but the run of Benfica is something which could upset Pep’s side hopes.
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
April 5, 2016 • 19:45 • Allianz-Arena, München
Referee: S. Marciniak
Bayern Munich v Benfica LiveStreams
Bayern Munich head coach Pep Guardiola on Monday (4th March) gave a lengthy defence of his record at the club and said winning the UEFA Champions League was “not easy” ahead of their quarter-final first leg against Benfica on Tuesday (5th March).
Pep Guardiola, Bayern Munich coach:
“All people at Bayern Munich, all football people from the president to middle people want to win the treble, but Barcelona want to win the treble, in Madrid too. I have learnt here that if we don’t win the treble my task here is not complete, it’s not enough and I have accepted it’s my problem. I can’t put it to the side, I have it here (points to shoulders), I have accepted it from the first day, the first press conference here until the last moment. I think every day about winning the next game.
We have arrived at the knockout stage in every year and we can create through me, my players, my head, we have all to make it happen. You have to do all, all business, always continue with the aim, absolutely yes. But we must not forget Bayern Munich is one of the best teams in the world, but in the last 40 years we’ve won the Champions League twice, so once in every twenty years. So does that say that Bayern Munich are bad? No, that says it’s not easy, it’s not easy, the other teams are good too.
Benfica, tomorrow in the Allianz Arena it will show how good Benfica is. Tomorrow we will try with the players, all the middle men, with the president and Uli Hoeness and Mathias Sammer want to continue, try to win the Champions League, but it’s not easy, so that is my opinion.”
Benfica say Bayern Munich are tournament favourites, as they prepared for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final at the Allianz Arena in Munich on Tuesday (5th April).
Rui Vitoria, Benfica head coach:
“Since we began this Champions League campaign, our focus has been always the next match. We always said our goal was match by match. And we have been working this way and we will continue this way. Obviously, if you look at teams in Europe – namely Bayern Munich – they are a candidate to win this competition. We have some candidates to win this competition. Now, we are here, we will not stop what we intended to do, nor we will have any fear of playing. We will go to the match. And when we go to a match, we must analyse the skills of our opponents.
What I say is that we are expecting a very strong opponent that will give us several problems. But only when we play in the field can we be successful. Also, it’s a qualifier, where we have two matches. Obviously, we want to take the game back to Lisbon, which is one of our concerns. But we are not worried about the final or something else.
The next game is the most important thing for us and we will – now answering your second question – we want to take game to back Lisbon. Obviously I want to win. Any coach from any team wants to win. That’s our goal. But we know that, on the other side, we have a very strong team. It’s a 180-minute qualifier and we will play all those minutes with enthusiasm and with a huge will to win.”
Probable team lineups
Bayern Munich: Neuer, Kimmich, Javi Martinez, Alaba, Lahm, Xabi Alonso, Douglas Costa, T.Muller, Vidal, F.Ribery, Lewandowski
Out: Badstuber, J.Boateng, Robben (?)
Benfica: Ederson Moraes, Silvio, Nilson-Lindelof, Jardel, Eliseu, Renato Sanches, Samaris, Pizzi, Jonas, Gaitan, Mitroglou
Out: Lisandro Lopez, Luisao, Nuno Santos, Julio Cesar