Good news for Thomas Müller. The Germany international has started light training as planned five days after the muscle injury he suffered at Hannover. Müller completed some runs at the Säbener Strasse training ground during Friday’s final pre-match training session ahead of the Bundesliga home game against Schalke. The 24-year-old will continue his rehab work over the next few days.
Six Bayern stars in Germany squad
Germany start World Cup year 2014 with six Bayern stars in their squad. Joachim Löw called up Manuel Neuer, Philipp Lahm, Jérôme Boateng, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Toni Kroos and Mario Götze on Friday for the first friendly after the winter break when Germany take on Chile in Stuttgart next Wednesday.
Impressive home record against Schalke
Bayern entertain Schalke 04 at the Allianz Arena on Saturday with a very positive record under their belts. FCB have won 30 out of 43 league meetings with the Royal Blues on home ground in Munich. The Reds have only lost six times and the other seven games ended all-square. The goals for and against reflect the superiority of Bayern over the years (111 for, 36 against). The previous home encounter on 9 February 2013 ended in a 4-0 win for FCB. And this season’s first meeting in Gelsenkirchen last autumn also saw Bayern win by the same margin.
Six wins on the bounce
The overall record between the two teams also leans heavily in favour of Bayern. The previous 87 matches in the Bundesliga produced 44 wins for the Reds, 18 for Schalke and 25 draws. The goals tally is 180 for and 97 against. FCB have come out on top in the last six meetings, their longest ever run of victories over the Royal Blues. Schalke have failed to score in the past 533 minutes of play against Bayern.
Drees is the man in the middle
A first this season for Dr. Jochen Drees. The 43-year-old referee from Münster-Sarmsheim is in charge of Saturday’s home game for Bayern against Schalke 04, the first time he has refereed an FCB Bundesliga fixture in the current campaign. Drees has already refereed a DFB Cup tie this term, the 4-1 win against Hannover 96 in the second round. Drees will be assisted by Tobias Christ and Christian Gittelmann with Daniel Siebert as the fourth official.
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