<span class="sommario">Bayern München (27pts, 1st) v. Eintracht Frankfurt (16pts, 9th)</span></p> <span class="sommario">What: Bundesliga, Matchday 12 Who: Bayern München (27pts, 1st) v. Eintracht Frankfurt (16pts, 9th) When: Saturday, 3 November, 15:30 (CET) Where: Allianz Arena, Munich</span></p> League leaders Bayern host Eintracht Frankfurt at the Allianz Arena on Saturday afternoon. The Rekordmeister will be aiming to stretch their unbeaten start to the season.</p> Bayern – Three Points Is A Must</p> Ottmar Hitzfeld’s side were involved in an enthralling encounter with Borussia Mönchengladbach in the DFB Cup on Wednesday, weathering a valiant comeback attempt from the second division leaders to eventually emerge 3-1 victors.Bayern’s star strike partnership of Luca Toni and Miroslav Klose provided all three goals. </p> With a place in the last sixteen now secure, Bayern can concentrate on their main aim: the Bundesliga. Dropped points at the weekend – an entertaining if goalless draw at Dortmund in front of nearly 81,000 fans – mean that the Rekordmeister’s advantage over the chasing pack has been cut to four points.</p> Hitzfeld is aware that this advantage is far from comfortable, despite the fact that Bayern have led the table from the off. The coach has demanded that his side stretch the gap to at least eight points in the near future, and for that only wins will do, starting this Saturday against Eintracht. </p> Last Sunday’s stalemate was Bayern’s first 0-0 since the end of January, a tepid draw against Bochum which cost Felix Magath his job. Given the Rekordmeister’s richness of quality attacking options, you wouldn’t bet on them drawing another blank against a Frankfurt side who conceded five times in their last away league match.</p> Eintracht – Concentrating On The League</p> Frankfurt were eliminated from the DFB Cup by the narrowest of margins on Wednesday. Friedhelm Funkel’s men took the lead in Dortmund through captain Ioannis Amanatidis, only for the tables to be turned in the second half of what was a truly end-to-end encounter.</p> Fans and players alike will be disappointed that Eintracht – cup finalists two seasons ago – have relinquished their only realistic hope of silverware so soon. Nevertheless, they are one of several teams for whom the season’s chief aim is to avoid relegation, so Funkel will be more than happy if his side, currently 9th in the Bundesliga, can maintain their position until the end of the season.</p> The Eagles’ last two league performances are cause for concern, however. Although worthy of a point in the uninspiring stalemate against Hannover, Frankfurt lacked any kind of creative attacking ambition, much to the disdain of their fans. “If I had been watching I would have whistled too,” admitted playmaker Albert Streit after the match.</p> Still, on the back of a 5-1 drubbing at struggling Nuremberg, a 0-0 draw would have been more than welcome. As for the Bayern game, well Frankfurt have managed just one win in Munich in 25 attempts.</p> Funkel nevertheless believes they have a chance. “We’ll need all eleven players to play at their limit, we can’t afford to make many errors and we’ll need to make the most of the few chances we get.” </p> FORM GUIDE</p> <u>Bayern</u></p> </p> <table> <tbody> <tr class="tableInt"> <td>Match</td> <td>Result</td> <td>Date</td> <td>Championship</td> </tr> <tr class="int_tabTR"> <td>Bayern - Mönchengladbach</td> <td>3 - 1</td> <td>31/10/2007</td> <td>DFB-POKAL</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Borussia - Bayern </td> <td>0 - 0</td> <td>28/10/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> <tr class="int_tabTR"> <td>Red Star Belgrade - Bayern </td> <td>2 - 3</td> <td>25/10/2007</td> <td>UEFA CUP</td> </tr> <tr> <td>VfL Bochum - Bayern </td> <td>1 - 2</td> <td>20/10/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> <tr class="int_tabTR"> <td>Bayern - Nürnberg</td> <td>3 - 0</td> <td>07/10/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Belenenses - Bayern </td> <td>0 - 2</td> <td>04/10/2007</td> <td>UEFA CUP</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <u>Eintracht</u></p> </p> <table> <tbody> <tr class="tableInt"> <td>Match</td> <td>Result</td> <td>Date</td> <td>Championship</td> </tr> <tr class="int_tabTR"> <td>Borussia - Eintracht </td> <td>2 - 1</td> <td>31/10/2007</td> <td>DFB-POKAL</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Eintracht - Hannover 96</td> <td>0 - 0</td> <td>26/10/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> <tr class="int_tabTR"> <td>Nürnberg - Eintracht </td> <td>5 - 1</td> <td>20/10/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Eintracht - Bayer Leverkusen</td> <td>2 - 1</td> <td>07/10/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> <tr class="int_tabTR"> <td>Cottbus - Eintracht </td> <td>2 - 2</td> <td>30/09/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Eintracht - Karlsruher SC</td> <td>0 - 1</td> <td>26/09/2007</td> <td>BUNDESLIGA</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Head to Head In Munich</p> 2006/07: Bayern 2-0 Eintracht</p> 2005/06: Bayern 5-2 Eintracht</p> 2003/04: Bayern 3-1 Eintracht</p> 2000/01: Bayern1-2 Eintracht</p> 1999/00: Bayern4-1 Eintracht</p> TEAM NEWS</p> <u>Bayern</u></p> Ottmar Hitzfeld’s choice of goalkeeper will depend on the speed of Oliver Kahn’s recovery from his elbow injury. If the veteran is match-fit, he should start, otherwise Rensing will continue to deputise. Demichelis did not train on Thursday after a muscle injury suffered against Gladbach in the cup. Van Buyten may deputise for the Argentinean.</p> With Sagnol and Ismael Bayern’s only other casualties, Hitzfeld may opt to rotate the team with next week’s Uefa Cup in mind. Lell could come in at right-back, with Lahm switching to the left and Jansen dropping to the bench. Franck Ribéry is fit again while Mark Van Bommel will return in place of Ottl. Lukas Podolski set up two goals in midweek, but will have to make do with a place on the bench again.</p> Likely XI (4-4-2): Kahn - Lell, Lucio, Van Buyten, Lahm - Altintop, van Bommel, Zé Roberto, Ribéry - Toni, Klose</p> <u>Eintracht</u></p> The absence of the suspended Sotos Kyrgiakos comes as a major blow to the Eagles. Brazilian defender Chris is favourite to deputise, but Galindo and Preuss are also in the frame. Coach Friedhelm Funkel will probably opt for a single-pronged attack, so Naohiro Takahara – ineffective in midweek – will make way for compatriot Junichi Inamoto.</p> Alex Meier should be recalled, but with Albert Streit touch-and-go for Saturday after picking up a knock in midweek, Weissenberger might yet keep his spot in the XI. Mahdavikia and Vasoski miss out through injury.</p> Likely XI (4-2-3-1): Pröll - Ochs, Russ, Chris, Spycher - Inamoto, Fink - Streit, A. Meier, Köhler - Amanatidis</p> PLAYERS TO WATCH</p> Having missed out on the action for the last couple of weeks, Bayern’s Franck Ribéry (pictured) will be raring to go. With Frankfurt likely to pack the middle of the park, the Frenchman’s surges down the left flank may be the Rekordmeister’s best source of joy.</p> Much like Liverpool’s Peter Crouch, Frankfurt’s lanky forward Alex Meier divides opinion. Sometimes useless, but he’s also capable of producing top-class performances, as evidenced by his winning brace against Hamburger SV earlier in the season. With Amanatidis likely being a heavily marked man on Saturday, Meier’s shooting prowess could be vital for Eintracht.</p> PREDICTION</p> Considering what happened in their last away league game, Eintracht will understandably be cautious about attacking. Any chances they have of grabbing a result will hinge on whether playmaker Streit is fit in time. Either way, their hopes of keeping a clean sheet against a Bayern side that scores goals for fun are practically nil, and this should be a straightforward three points for the home team.</p> </p>
