Review: FCB impress on road to Berlin
FC Bayern contest their 21st DFB Cup final and aim to seal their 18th triumph at Berlin Olympic stadium on Saturday. Once again they cross swords with Bundesliga runners-up Borussia Dortmund. The two sides faced off in cup ties in each of the last four years, two times in the semi-finals and twice in the final. fcbayern.de reviews the road to Berlin for both teams.
Bayern's record: five wins, 12 goals for, 2 against
First round: 3-1 away to FC Nöttingen
The German record champions lived up to their role as overwhelming favourites against fifth-tier FC Nöttingen. The 29,486 capacity crowd at Karlsruhe's Wildparkstadion saw Arturo Vidal (5, pen), Mario Götze (17) and Robert Lewandowski (26) wrap things up before the interval. Nöttingen's Niklas Hecht-Zirpel scored a shock equaliser a quarter-hour into the contest.
Second round: 3-1 away to VfL Wolfsburg
FCB turned in an impressive display in the top clash of the second round, knocking out title holders VfL Wolfsburg early on. Munich shone particularly in the first half and were clearly dominant. Douglas Costa (15) scored the opener, Thomas Müller (20, 34) extended the lead in the first half. André Schürrle scored a stoppage-time consolation goal for the hosts.
Round of 16: 1-0 against Darmstadt 98
Bayern took on the promoted side from Hesse in the last home match before the Christmas break. FCB were clearly on top, but had difficulties finding gaps in Darmstadt's compact defence. Munich evetually made the next round courtesy of Xabi Alonso's sumptuous 25-yard thunderbolt (40).
Quarter-finals: 3-0 away to VfL Bochum
FC Bayern travelled to face second division VfL Bochum in February and went through to the semi-finals after an ultimately convincing 3-0 win. Robert Lewandowski (38, 90) and Thiago (61) wrapped up the victory for the favourites. Bochum went a man down shortly before half-time as Jan Simunek was sent off. Thomas Müller's missed penalty in the first half did not matter in the end.
Semi-finals: 2-0 against Werder Bremen
Bayern entertained Werder Bremen in the last challenge on the road to Berlin. The relegation-threatened northerners proved a hard nut to crack, but Thomas Müller's brace (30, 71, pen) sent Bayern into their 21st cup final.
Dortmund's record: five wins, 17 goals for, 2 against
FCB's opponents Borussia Dortmund contested four of their five matches away from home but made the final without undue trouble. After a 2-0 victory over third-tier Chemnitzer FC and a 7-1 thrashing of second division SC Paderborn, Borussia crossed swords with three Bundesliga sides. The black and yellows won 2-0 against FC Augsburg in the last sixteen before downing VfB Stuttgart 3-1 in the quarter-finals. Borussia visited the venue for the cup final in the last four, winning 3-0 against Hertha Berlin.