Bayern won't bear gifts as Flick wants trophy at Bremen

BERLIN • Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick wants his side to show no mercy and wrap up an eighth consecutive Bundesliga title today at the expense of relegation-threatened Werder Bremen.

Victory at Bremen, where Bayern have won all 12 games over the last decade, will clinch a record-extending 30th top-flight triumph with two games to spare, and the first of a potential treble in Flick's debut season in charge.

"We want to be champions on Tuesday," Flick, who stepped in when Niko Kovac was sacked last November, said at his virtual news conference yesterday.

"We are not giving away any gifts to Werder. We want to reach our goal on Tuesday and it is up to us."

Bayern have won their last 10 league games and another victory behind closed doors today would give them an unassailable 10-point lead before second-placed Borussia Dortmund (66 points) host strugglers Mainz tomorrow.

"It's our plan to bring it (the trophy) back home," said midfielder Leon Goretzka.

Top scorer Robert Lewandowski, who needs one more strike to set a career best in the German league, and Thomas Muller, one shy of the record for assists in a single league season, will return after missing Bayern's 2-1 win over Borussia Monchengladbach because of suspension.

When the two sides met in December, Lewandowski, the league's leading scorer with 30 goals this term, netted twice while Muller, who is sitting on 20 assists, also got on the scoresheet in Bayern's 6-1 win.

The Bavarian giants have a legitimate shot at landing a second treble in seven years - they will face Bayer Leverkusen in the German Cup final and have one foot in the last eight of the Champions League after pummelling Chelsea 3-0 away in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

But first, Bayern must take care of a Bremen side fighting for Bundesliga survival.

Coming into the match, the hosts have taken 10 points from a possible 18, including a 5-1 rout of bottom side Paderborn on Saturday.

However, they still remain in 17th place (28), three points from safety.

With just three games remaining, including tonight's clash, Bremen coach Florian Kohfeldt is not holding out too much hope of an upset.

"There's no reason to go into this with any kind of euphoria," he said. "We haven't won anything yet and we're still in the relegation zone."

Kohfeldt has lost all five games against Bayern since taking charge of the senior side in October 2017, but a defeat by Flick's men may not necessarily spell an end to their storied and long stay in the top flight.

Bremen's next two games are at 17th-placed Mainz and at home to 12th-placed Cologne, so their fate remains in their hands.

The four-time Bundesliga winners have played more top-tier games (1,897) than any other team and they have been relegated just once since the competition's inception in 1963, dropping down a level in 1980 before winning promotion the following season.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS

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