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Relieved Klopp left struggling for words as Dortmund win
9 November 2014
Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp was left struggling for words after ending a wretched run with a 1-0 win over Borrusia Monchengladbach.
Klopp's side had lost their previous five Bundesliga matches before hosting Lucien Favre's Gladbach on Sunday, with Werder Bremen's win over Stuttgart on Saturday seeing Dortmund drop to the bottom of the table.
Dortmund were somewhere close to being back to their best with their general play, dominating their previously unbeaten visitors from start to finish.
But with the likes of Marco Reus wasting a host of chances, Dortmund only claimed victory due to an incredible own-goal from Christoph Kramer, who lobbed his own goalkeeper from inside the centre-circle.
"I can't find the words for it [to describe his relief]," Klopp said afterwards. "It takes much pressure off of us.
"In this situation the team played an extraordinary game. In the first half we played outstanding football.
"Defensively we did not let the strengths of Gladbach come to the fore and then we scored a very strange goal.
"We have been given a bunch of chances and then a crazy goal must come to make it perfect.
"At the end we were a little shaky, but we won. It's a great feeling."
Despite earning Dortmund the victory, Klopp admitted sympathy for Kramer, although he is sure that the own-goal will only go down as a minor blot on the World Cup winner's copybook.
"He is an exceptional player who has made a terrific development," he added. "It [the own-goal] will remain only a small side note as a curiosity in his career.
"For us, it was a very important three points. If it had to be this way, then Christoph Kramer inadvertently now has a place in our history."
Borussia Dortmund defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos has been ruled out for two weeks with a broken fibula.
The 26-year-old suffered the injury to his right leg in Sunday's 1-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach, a result that ended a five-match losing streak for Dortmund in the Bundesliga.
However, the Greece international will miss just a fortnight of action after the club confirmed he will be back for the UEFA Champions League match at Arsenal on November 26.
Sokratis would have been unavailable for the next league match against Paderborn anyway, having picked up his fifth yellow card against Monchengladbach.
Dortmund were helped off the foot of the German top flight by Christoph Kramer's remarkable own goal from inside the centre circle.
The 69-year-old feels the Bundesliga title race is already decided as the reigning champions are on another level than any of their rivals
Former Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes believes the Bavarian club have no competition in the Bundesliga due to Borussia Dortmund 's struggles.
Dortmund have finished in the top-two in the past four seasons in Germany's top flight, including back-to-back titles in 2010-11 and 2011-12, but they have opened the 2014-15 season poorly.
Jurgen Klopp's side climbed off the foot of the Bundesliga table with a 1-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach on Sunday, but are 13 points off a top-two spot - and 17 shy of leaders Bayern after 11 matches.
Heynckes, who in his most recent of three stints in charge of Bayern took them to Champions League and Bundesliga success, said Dortmund's struggles meant there was a lack of tension in the title race.
"Of course, the tension has reduced a bit," Heynckes told Perform . "When the championship is already decided in advance and you can tell that Bayern is going to win the championship easily, an objective spectator might be disappointed.
"Talking about the title race, there's certainly a lack of tension. But that's not Bayern's fault. They did their homework and got a great squad. They're dominating the league. Dortmund's bad start has led to a situation in which Bayern has no competition. I wouldn't have expected that.
"It was obvious that Dortmund's players would come back exhausted from the World Cup, considering their style of play. For me, it was possible that some of their players would perform a bit worse than usual, but in this case you have to make the right adjustments. You need to have a squad which can compensate for this. But no one expected this performance from Dortmund."
Heynckes went on to claim that the squad he took to European success in 2013 was the best to have represented the Allianz Arena outfit and said they have only built on that under Pep Guardiola.
"After the defeat in the Champions League final in 2012 against Chelsea we set up the squad, got more quality in the team. Then we had 2013 - the best squad in the history of Bayern Munich," he said.
"And the organisation continues in that way. They added Mario Gotze and Robert Lewandowski who certainly are two of the most wanted players of the Bundesliga. Xabi Alonso came to Bayern as well. When he played in Liverpool and in Madrid, he always performed at a world-class level.
"So, you can see, the quality of Bayern's squad is better than anyone else's in Germany and that's the reason why they're dominating the Bundesliga and why they won the title last season.
"They also haven't had to worry so far in the Champions League. They are already qualified [for the knockout stages] and have a huge chance of winning the tournament this year."
Bayern have won all four of their Group E games so far and cannot be caught in first place.
The experienced midfielder is one step closer to his comeback after resuming squad practice with the Bundesliga champions
Bastian Schweinsteiger has returned to training with Bayern Munich following a spell on the sidelines with ankle and knee injuries.
The Germany captain has yet to feature for the Bundesliga champions this season, having picked up a minor ankle issue in Bayern's close-season preparations.
While fears surrounding that injury were played down, he then suffered irritation around his patellar tendon, which kept him from returning to competitive club action.
Having endured a frustrating few months after helping Germany lift the World Cup in Brazil, Schweinsteiger returned to training at Bayern's Sabener Strasse training ground on Tuesday.
Footage of the 30-year-old heading to training was posted on Bayern's official Twitter account, with the accompanying message "welcome back, Basti!"
The club's chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge recently stated the midfielder was likely to return to training during the international break, adding that he may play for the club before the turn of the year.
"He is likely to come back in 2014," Rummenigge told Kicker earlier this year.
'Klopp was enthusiastic about joining Bayern Munich'
By Stefan Coerts
Nov 12, 2014 10:16:26
The current Borussia Dortmund boss was one of the candidates to take charge of the Bundesliga champions back in 2008
Mainz director Christian Heidel has revealed that current Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp came close to joining Bayern Munich in the summer of 2008.
Bayern had lined up Klopp as one of the candidates to replace Ottmar Hitzfeld as head coach following his successful spell with Mainz and approached him by phone to formally express their interest, according to Heidel.
However, they eventually opted to appoint Jurgen Klinsmann instead, despite claims that Klopp was "enthusiastic" about their interest.
"I was sitting right next to him when he got a call from Bayern director Uli Hoeness," Heidel told Bild.
"Bayern had two candidates and Klopp was one of them, the domestic option. Jurgen Klinsmann was the other candidate and he was the internationally renowned option.
"Of course, he started to get enthusiastic about it. When Bayern give you a call to express their interest, it always does something with you."
Klopp was also courted by Bayer Leverkusen at the time before he opted to leave Mainz to take charge at Dortmund.
The 47-year-old has guided BVB to two Bundesliga titles and one DFB Pokal since, while also leading them to the Champions League final in 2012-13, which they lost 2-1 to Bayern.
'There's more to Dortmund than just Reus' - Beckenbauer
By Stefan Coerts
Nov 14, 2014 10:51:17
The Bayern legend is confident Jurgen Klopp's side would not be irreparably damaged should the forward leave the club
Bayern Munich icon Franz Beckenbauer is confident that Borussia Dortmund will bounce back if they were to lose Marco Reus.
The Germany international has a buyout clause in his existing contract that allows him to leave BVB for €25 million at the end of the summer and he has been heavily linked with Bayern in the past few months.
However, Beckenbauer claims there is far more to Jurgen Klopp's side than their star attacker and is confident they would not suffer for long should he leave Signal Iduna Park.
"Would Reus' departure be the end of Dortmund's ambitions? There's more to Dortmund than just Reus," Beckenbauer told TZ.
"They still have plenty of other great players, although Reus is obviously an important player for Dortmund.
"When there's so much talk about a player, it means that he is an extraordinary player. And that's most certainly the case with Reus."
The 25-year-old has netted five goals in 10 appearances in all competitions for Dortmund so far this season.
Dortmund recently put talks over a new contract on hold as they want to focus on their performances on the pitch first following their poor start to the season.
Reus' existing deal is due to expire in June 2017.
The Bayern Munich defender has left the squad to receive treatment, with Joachim Low handing a call-up to uncapped Wolfsburg man Robin Knoche
Bet
= SpainESP £21.5 Draw £32 GermanyDEU £32 BetVernons
Germany defender Jerome Boateng has been ruled out of the world champions' friendly against Spain on Tuesday with a calf injury.
The Bayern Munich man played in the 4-0 win over Gibraltar but has been forced to leave the camp to receive treatment to his left leg, with the DFB confirming the news on their official website.
Wolfsburg defender Robin Knoche could now be set to make his international debut in Vigo after being selected as Boateng's replacement by coach Joachim Low.
Centre-back Knoche, 22, has played eight games for the Under-21s and has helped his club climb up to second in the Bundesliga this season.
The injury to Bayern's Boateng means there are now only four players - Benedikt Howedes, Toni Kroos, Thomas Muller and Mario Gotze - that featured in Germany's 2014 World Cup final win in the squad to face deposed champions Spain.
The German side's sporting director says that they are not interested in a move for either player and insists that they will not try to sign Xherdan Shaqiri from Bayern Munich
Schalke have no interest in signing Chelsea's Andre Schurrle or Arsenal striker Lukas Podolski in the January transfer window, says sporting director Horst Heldt.
Both players have been linked with moves away from their clubs in recent weeks with Podolski vocal about his unhappiness at a lack of regular playing time at Arsenal.
Schalke are currently 11th in the Bundesliga after a slow start to the season which saw coach Jens Keller replaced by former Chelsea boss Roberto Di Matteo.
With the Italian set to welcome his former side to the Veltins Area on November 25 in the Champions League, Heldt is adamant that his side are not interested in the Premier League duo.
"We're not considering Andre Schurrle at all," he told Sport Bild magazine, "and the same goes for Xherdan Shaqiri and Lukas Podolski."
Arsene Wenger declared on Sunday that Arsenal do not intend to sell Podolski in the January window and claimed that rumours of the Germany international leaving the Gunners have been "fabricated".
Schurrle, meanwhile, has come in for criticism from manager Jose Mourinho this season after a poor display in the League Cup against Shrewsbury.
The World Cup winner has made just four Premier League starts for the Blues this season and was forced to pull out of the current Germany squad after suffering from an infection.
Neuer gets Ballon d'Or dig at Ronaldo: I don't do underpants ads
By Tom Webber
Nov 17, 2014 16:20:21
The German spoke of his chances of beating the holder to the Fifa upcoming award for best player in the world, suggesting it takes more than commercial savviness to win
Manuel Neuer believes he has a chance of winning the upcoming Ballon d'Or, despite not having brand awareness like Cristiano Ronaldo has with his underwear range.
The Bayern Munich goalkeeper is a genuine candidate to win the award, having lifted the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal titles before getting his hands on the World Cup with Germany in Brazil in July.
He faces stiff competition from the Champions League winner Ronaldo, however, who is hoping to pick up the individual accolade for the second consecutive year.
When asked about the effect of the Real Madrid forward's image on the voting, Neuer admitted that while it is more difficult to get noticed when playing in his position he will keep to his efforts on the pitch.
"I am an athlete, no ambassador of a brand, besides being the first goalkeeper of Adidas. I'm not the sort of person who poses in their underwear," he told Kicker.
"I hate the red carpet, I prefer the green grass. I feel better on the pitch, trying to improve myself.
"After the games the highlights show mostly the goals, scoring chances, assists. The spectator tends not to remember that as a goalkeeper I make difficult saves at great risk and start moves with my efforts."
Neuer went on to discuss the scale of Germany's World Cup triumph in terms of his career, ranking it higher than his achievements at club level.
"History of football, something unforgettable," he added. "Even the successes with Bayern Munich are moved to second place."
The goalkeeper is unavailable for Germany's visit to face overthrown world champions Spain in a friendly on Tuesday but is adamant that there is plenty of work for the squad ahead of Euro 2016.
"We have to work hard on the way that we play so that the team we are building now can compete at the peak of our ability at the tournament."
Cologne have ruled out a potential return for Lukas Podolski as they cannot afford to sign the unsettled Arsenal forward.
Podolski joined Arsenal from Cologne in June 2012, but has been frustrated by his lack of starting opportunities since the arrival of Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona in the close season.
The Germany international and World Cup winner has hinted that he may have to leave the Emirates Stadium to secure more first-team football, although manager Arsene Wenger has since denied that the 29-year-old is in line for a move away from the club.
And Cologne sporting director Jorg Schmadkte has poured cold water on suggestions that a switch back to the RheinEnergieStadion could be on the cards.
"We've explained our standpoint, and I think that Lukas also sees it that way," Schmadkte told Bild.
"We don't have five million euros, and we can neither pay the transfer fee nor the salary of a player like Podolski."
Cologne president Werner Spinner also dismissed talk of an approach for the former Bayern Munich man, expressing concerns that Podolski's return could disrupt the harmony of the squad.
"It would be difficult to integrate a national team player who has 121 caps and also plays Champions League at Arsenal," Spinner said.
"But nobody in Cologne has anything against Lukas Podolski. He is a popular figure, but we don't want to put the squad and their homogeneity in danger."
Bayern Munich's Xabi Alonso has been surprised by the quality of goalkeeper Manuel Neuer since joining the German champions.
Alonso made the move from Real Madrid to Bayern in August and, as well as featuring in midfield, has often formed part of a defensive line in front of Neuer.
The Germany international has cemented his position as one of the world's best goalkeepers in recent years and was rewarded with a nomination for the FIFA Ballon d'Or recently.
Having featured alongside Neuer for the last few months, Alonso revealed he has been taken aback by the goalkeeper's quality as well as that of versatile midfielder David Alaba.
"I must say that he is not only by far the best goalkeeper with whom I have ever played but also as an 11th outfield player he is outstanding," he told Sport Bild.
"Of course I already knew that he was world class but, along with David Alaba, he has nevertheless surprised me in Bavaria by how strong he really is."
Neuer will go up alongside five fellow Germans for the Ballon d'Or, with World Cup winners Philipp Lahm, Mario Gotze, Toni Kroos, Thomas Muller and Bastian Schweinsteiger also nominated.
However, Alonso believes the individual achievements of former winners Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi could make them favourites.
Asked who he felt would win the award, Alonso added: "It is the fundamental question. Counting individual or personal accomplishments? In that case, it is always difficult against Messi and Ronaldo.
"Or is it the successes with the team? Then the Germans have the best opportunities."
Bayern Munich sporting director Matthias Sammer has agreed a three-year contract extension with the club.
The former Germany international has held the role with the Bundesliga champions since 2012, with the club winning a host of domestic and European titles since then.
Sammer signed the new deal on Wednesday, with the 47-year-old now under contract at the Allianz Arena until June 2018.
"I am grateful for the confidence of the board but also for the good cooperation with my colleagues," he said in a statement on the club's official website.
"I promise that I will continue with the same passion and intensity with which I have fulfilled this task so far.
"We all have big goals with Bayern. I want to help us to achieve this."
Bayern Munich have confirmed that captain Philipp Lahm has undergone a successful operation on his fractured ankle.
Lahm sustained the injury in a training session on Tuesday, the 31-year-old World Cup winner collapsing to the ground unchallenged.
The Bavarian club duly revealed that Lahm was facing a three-month lay-off.
And the versatile former Germany captain, who can operate as either a defensive midfielder or a full-back, has now gone under the knife.
Bayern posted on their official Twitter account: "Philipp #Lahm's operation was a success. Ankle held in place with metal plate and screws. Several weeks rest and then he begins rehab."
Lahm has featured in 18 matches for Bayern this season.
Pep Guardiola's men resume Bundesliga action on Saturday with a home game against Hoffenheim at the Allianz Arena.
Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp has confirmed that Marco Reus has recovered from an ankle injury and can face Paderborn.
Reus injured ankle ligaments for the third time in five months in Dortmund's 1-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach before the international break, a blow that forced him to miss Germany's Euro 2016 qualifier with Gibraltar and the friendly against Spain.
However, the 25-year-old is now back to fitness and will be available for selection as Dortmund look to build on the Monchengladbach victory following a dreadful start to the season.
Striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has returned to training following muscular problems, while full-back Lukasz Piszczek is expected to play despite a back issue.
Nuri Sahin, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Oliver Kirch, all of whom have suffered from injury troubles, are in contention to feature at some point but defenders Mats Hummels (foot) and Sokratis Papastathopoulos (leg) are out.
"Marco Reus is fit to play against SC Paderborn," Klopp said on Thursday. "Sahin, Blaszczykowski and Kirch are not as far as Reus, ideally we still are able to give them some time.
"Aubameyang had muscular problems and then gastric flu, but he'll return to training today. Piszczek should be fit to play against Paderborn.
"Hummels is not as far as we have planned, hopefully he'll be an option for Wednesday [in the UEFA Champions League game with Arsenal]. Sokratis is still limping a bit, so I hope Hummels is available on Wednesday."
Paderborn have enjoyed a decent start to their first season in the German top flight and sit in ninth position, five points ahead of struggling Dortmund.
And Klopp is wary of the quality of Andre Breitenreiter's men.
"I have the maximum respect for all that is happening at SC Paderborn right now," he added.
"Paderborn is an example that you can achieve something in football with not a lot of money, a good idea and many right decisions.
Bayern Munich expect Manuel Neuer to recover from a knee complaint in time to face Hoffenheim on Saturday.
The 28-year-old did not feature in Germany's 1-0 friendly victory over Spain on Tuesday due to discomfort in his knee.
However, Bayern's first-choice goalkeeper safely came through a training session on Wednesday and should play between the posts when the Bundesliga resumes after the international break.
"It [the knee injury] was only a short-term problem," said Bayern's sporting director Matthias Sammer.
Neuer's availability will be a welcome relief for Bayern coach Pep Guardiola, who has had problems with his goalkeeping options this season.
Pepe Reina, signed to provide competition for Neuer in the close-season, has been unavailable since October due to a calf injury, while third-choice Tom Starke has been sidelined with an ankle injury.
Bundesliga Preview: Dortmund look to build form, Bayern host Hoffenheim
20 November 2014
Borussia Dortmund will be keen to string together a good run of form after ending a seven-match winless run in the Bundesliga last time out.
The Signal Iduna Park outfit have endured a dismal start to the season and had even momentarily slipped to the foot of the German top flight prior to beating high-flying Borussia Monchengladbach before the international break.
Next up for Jurgen Klopp's men is a trip to Paderborn, who have acquitted themselves well since winning promotion at the end of last season, but come into Saturday's clash on the back of a 3-0 loss to Augsburg.
Dortmund are boosted by Marco Reus' return to the side following an ankle injury this week, while Nuri Sahin is also nearing a first-team comeback after missing the start of the season due to knee surgery.
"I am pain free and just happy that I can be on the pitch again," Sahin told Bild. "I hope that I might get a few minutes playing time in our test game this week. I want to finally help the team again."
Sahin is also confident Dortmund - 17 points adrift of leaders and defending champions Bayern Munich - can turn their campaign around.
"I was always convinced that we would come out of the bottom," he added. "Until the [winter] break we need to collect as many points as possible and in the second half [of the season] fully attack once again."
Bayern are four points clear of second-placed Wolfsburg and will be looking to extend their advantage at home to Hoffenheim, who - having gone unbeaten for the opening nine games of the season - have now suffered back-to-back defeats and conceded seven goals in the process.
Wolfsburg are currently on a better run of form than Bayern and would keep the pressure on Pep Guardiola's side with a win at Schalke on Saturday.
Schalke have won all of their home fixtures and lost all away matches since Roberto Di Matteo took charge last month.
Gladbach, who had not tasted defeat prior to their 1-0 loss to Dortmund, are at home to Eintracht Frankfurt, while Hannover could make it four league wins on the bounce against Bayer Leverkusen.
At the other end of the division, just two points separate the bottom six clubs, so basement side Stuttgart will be eager to leap up the standings when they welcome Augsburg on Sunday.
Fellow bottom-three sides Hamburg and Werder Bremen meet at the Imtech Arena, and the latter will have had their confidence boosted by consecutive Bundesliga victories.
Elsewhere, Mainz host Freiburg, while Hertha Berlin head to Cologne.
Werder Bremen have been dealt a blow after striker Franco Di Santo suffered a knee ligament injury in training.
The Argentine, who has netted six goals in 11 league games this season, was preparing for this weekend's Bundesliga clash at Hamburg when he sustained the problem on Wednesday.
MRI scans on Thursday revealed the extent of the injury, meaning Di Santo will be missing for Sunday's Nordderby.
"This is obviously a setback for us," said coach Viktor Skripnik. "Franco was in very good shape, we would have liked to have had him here.
"But we have good alternatives who have our full confidence.
"I am sure that we will compensate for the loss together."
Ludovic Obraniak is also expected to miss the derby fixture with a thigh injury, while Sebastian Prodl will be assessed during training on Friday following his return from international duty with Austria.
David Alaba hopes to be involved in Bayern Munich's training camp in January as he continues his recovery from knee surgery.
Versatile Austria international Alaba was ruled out for several weeks earlier this month, after suffering a partial tear of the medial collateral ligament and damage to the medial meniscus in his right knee during Bayern's UEFA Champions League meeting with Roma.
However, the 22-year-old is confident he can soon return to action having undergone successful surgery.
"The knee's looking good and it's feeling good too," Alaba told Bayern's official website.
"I'd like to be back with the team in time for the training camp in early January."
Bayern face Hoffenheim on Saturday, a club Alaba spent time on loan with in the second half of the 2010-11 season.
While Alaba recognises the progress made by Markus Gisdol's side, who currently sit fifth in the Bundesliga, he is confident Bayern will prove too strong for their opponents.
"It's obviously a shame when you can't face your former friends," said Alaba of Hoffenheim.
"We will win ... but they're in really good shape this season.
"They're playing very well as a team and scoring lots of goals - that's their big plus."
Jurgen Klopp has revealed he would welcome the chance to manage in England if he were ever to leave Borussia Dortmund.
Klopp has become something of a cult hero at Signal Iduna Park since arrving from Mainz in 2008, helping the club to two Bundesliga titles as well as one DFB-Pokal crown.
A prominent figure in helping the club return from the brink of bankruptcy to become Bundesliga heavyweights, Klopp has regularly been linked with moves to the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United in recent years.
With Dortmund currently struggling in the top flight - sitting 15th with three wins from 11 games - Klopp revealed he would would be open to discussions over jobs in England.
Asked by BT Sport's SportsHUB programme about working in England, he responded: "I think it's the only country where I should work, next to Germany, because it's the only country I know the language a little bit and I need the language for my work.
"If somebody will call me, then we will talk about it."
Klopp's Dortmund have - to an extent - been victims of their own success, with a number of their star players having been snapped up by German champions and rivals Bayern Munich.
Robert Lewandowski and Mario Gotze have each made the switch, while Marco Reus has been heavily linked with joining the pair at the Allianz Arena.
However, Klopp played down the impact of losing such players and also dismissed the idea that he is intent on creating a legacy at Dortmund.
"I am here for more than six years, I don't know when it will end, I don't think about this," he added.
"But it's not my idea to build a legacy. We will see, as long as it's successful and we can develop everything, we shouldn't change.
"We had very successful years and we couldn't keep all these players. Not all of them stayed here. They had their own dreams, their own situations, different ideas, whatever. So we will see.
"The most important thing is the story of this club will go on. We'll have to do it with other players."
Bastian Schweinsteiger is ready to make his first appearance of the season for Bayern Munich this weekend, Pep Guardiola has revealed.
Midfielder Schweinsteiger has not played a competitive fixture since featuring in Germany's World Cup final victory over Argentina back in July due to a knee injury.
However, the Bayern vice-captain is fit for Saturday's Bundesliga clash with Hoffenheim after his four-month lay-off - giving coach Guardiola a much-needed boost after this week's blow of losing skipper Philipp Lahm for around three months with a fractured ankle.
When asked if Schweinsteiger is available for the game at the Allianz Arena, Guardiola told his pre-match media conference: "He's in the squad, which is good news."
Bayern were hit with several injury scares during the international break, with the likes of Thomas Muller and Manuel Neuer sustaining minor problems while away with Germany.
But while Guardiola confirmed on Friday that all of his players have returned to Munich fit, he was left to lament the loss of Lahm - who retired from international duty after captaining Germany to World Cup glory - until the new year.
"He was my most important player, of course it's tough for us," the Spaniard added.
Bayern hit full stride with some fantastic form before the international break, and have not lost in any competition since their 2-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the DFL-Supercup in August.
Ominously for the rest of the Bundesliga, the reigning champions' sit four points clear at the top of the table having dropped just six points all season.
However, although his team have won all six of their league matches at the Allianz this term - scoring 20 goals in the process - Guardiola is taking nothing for granted against a dangerous Hoffenheim outfit.
Markus Gisdol's side are fifth in the table, and claimed a memorable 3-3 draw on their last visit to Munich in March.
